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Law firm files for bankruptcy
By Times staff writer The legal remnant of what once was one of Tampa's most prominent law firms filed for bankruptcy protection from its creditors this week. Amcer Asset Management, formerly Annis Mitchell Cockey Edwards & Roehn, said it wants the bankruptcy court to supervise the distribution of its assets. The filing freezes a lawsuit brought by AmSouth Bank, which is trying to get back more than $3-million Annis Mitchell borrowed before it dissolved two years ago. In a particularly controversial move, nearly $1.5-million of the money was used to pay bonuses to 33 partners. A month after the payments were made, nine top partners quit and the firm fell apart. AmSouth said the lawyers who got the bonuses should be held personally responsible for paying back the money the law firm borrowed. Some of them already have settled with the bank. "We regret having to take this action, but it was unavoidable," said Joseph Edwards, a former Annis Mitchell partner. "We worked for two years to pay down our debts and attempted to settle the remaining balances, but due to legal action taken by one creditor, it is impossible for us to continue those efforts to close out the firm's books." He said court supervision will ensure that one creditor doesn't receive preferential treatment over others. Edwards said it would be up to the bankruptcy trustee whether to pursue recovery of money from the former partners. Amcer's filing says it has debts between $1-million and $10-million and less than $50,001 in assets. AmSouth declined to comment on the filing.
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From the Times Business report
From the AP
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