Oct. 16, 2014
Levene, Neale, Bender, Yoo & Brill LLP
See more on Levene, Neale, Bender, Yoo & Brill LLPLos Angeles | Bankruptcy, restructuring, commercial law
"We have flexibility with staffing, billing rates," he said. "We find having a smaller firm ... allows us to be responsive to clients in a way other firms can't."
That edge is important, according to the main partners, because the market the firm serves is competitive, and some competitors have had to shut down.
Ron Bender, another founding partner, said that at 23 lawyers, the firm is still sizeable as a bankruptcy boutique, but small enough to stay nimble.
The biggest case the firm is working on is a bankruptcy for Plaza Healthcare Center, a chain of 19 skilled nursing facilities.
"Just to handle a case like that requires a large practice, and no firm could've handled it as efficiently as we did," Bender said.
The firm's spread of attorneys also ensures it has a diverse set of experience upon which to draw. Neale cited another of the firm's recent successes, the acquisition of Evergreen Oil.
"It involved issues including transferring environmental permits, traditional operating issues - the company had suffered from a fire, so there was also reduced cashflow," he said.
The difficult facts of the case were"like a law school exam," Bender said. But "at the end of the day our fees were probably about half of what the lenders' fees were in the case."
Neale said the firm promotes flexibility for attorneys. He said unlike some larger operations that silo attorneys, the firm encourages collaboration.
"We staff according to need," he said. "We don't just stand on ceremony ... It's always about serving the client, so there's really no pride of authorship. If you have a case and someone can contribute value" they're encouraged to.
Success also depends on the flexibility of the firm's leadership. Neale and Bender are among its top billers, but both also have a leading role in managing the business side.
"Both of us have in our private lives a lot of financial and management type of experience, and we've been co-managing this law firm together since 1995," Bender said.
"It's difficult for small firms. At larger firms the people who manage aren't lawyers or are lawyers who give up their practice."
The heavy workload might make it tempting to take up offers to merge, but the firm's leadership said they preferred to stay small.
"We get approached by larger firms all the time," Neale said. "But most large firms don't like to do debtor work. It often presents conflicts."
Additionally, the small scale allows for a better work environment.
"We've approached this from the standpoint of investing everyone with a real interest in the success of the firm, financially and spiritually," Neale said. "From the most basic file-clerk person to the senior partners, there's never an attitude that there's something beneath you."
While opportunities to grow or merge aren't likely to dry up, the firm's leadership says it intends to keep operating as it has.
"If it ain't broke, don't fix it," Neale said.
- Paul Jones
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