GM bankrupcy probably on Monday

[vw709]

Well at least the stock market won't be surprised. Who in their right mind would own GM stock? It's over $1!

[blupearl]

Well I hope you weren't because they are bankrupt. The markets didn't tank though...it's only a crisis if you don't expect it.

[chittychittybangbang]

And Saturn is secure today....sold to Penske. Hummer is sold to a Chinese auto maker. It's about time...Hummer alone was damaging to GM's reputation. I'm sure there are fans out there but the general opinion was negative.

[~InNat~]

Too bad saturn is going to fail. They had some good cars finally...the saturn sky and astra were basically opels, a good euro brand. Too little too late.

[BillK]

At least someone is doing well:
http://www.autoblog.com/2009/06/25/c...n-first-month/

During bankruptcy, just about everyone involved with the affected company is going to feel the pain in some form. That is, of course, unless you're a lawyer. New York law firm Jonas Day has represented Chrysler during its time spent in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, and Automotive News is reporting that the firm billed $12.7 million for the month of May alone. That figure included 72 partners working on the case, in addition to another 193 lawyers chipping in. About $256,000 of that figure accounts for expenses, and the rest encompasses some hefty legal fees.

We're not all that surprised that it takes over 250 lawyers to execute a Chapter 11 bankruptcy of Chrysler's magnitude in only 40 days, but the figures for the firm's head lawyer, Corinne Ball, are staggering. Ball booked 15 hours a day, seven days per week for the entire month, at a bill rate of $900 per hour! That's $401,310 to you and I. On average, lawyers on the case billed $477 per hour, while paralegals came in at $224.

How much does it cost to feed 266 lawyers for a month? $5,878. That's about $20 per person for three meals, seven days a week. Taxi fees? $4,247. Document copying was a hefty $52,000 and hotel bills rang up at $62,000. Recession? What recession? Those numbers are pretty large, but in the end, results are worth big money. And getting a company the size of Chrysler out of bankruptcy in 40 days is no small task.

Ball booked 15 hours a day, seven days per week for the entire month...Sorry, no one is working that amount of billable hours for an entire month. Actual hours has got to be 25% over that so she's working 19 hours every day? Chrysler gets robbed again!

[~InNat~]

Lawyers win either way. I'm sure the bill includes overhead and whatnot.

[blupearl]

Originally Posted by BillK

Ball booked 15 hours a day, seven days per week for the entire month...Sorry, no one is working that amount of billable hours for an entire month. Actual hours has got to be 25% over that so she's working 19 hours every day? Chrysler gets robbed again!

Don't worry, I'm sure they will figure out how to bill the taxpayer!