Font Size:

Usually, the currently serving chief legal officer of a thriving global conglomerate takes the top spot in our annual compensation survey. That was before the global recession. This year, the honor goes to Gregory Doody, an expert in bankruptcy law whose take-home pay from the Calpine Corp. was $9.7 million.

Houston-based Calpine hired Doody in July 2006 as its general counsel and chief restructuring officer, and his mission was to lead the biggest producer of natural gas-fueled power out of bankruptcy. He had arrived with proven credentials. Before joining Calpine, Doody had helped the Birmingham-based HealthSouth Corp. sell $1 billion in debt in 2006 and avoid bankruptcy after a 2003 accounting scandal.

Doody also helped Calpine cut its debt, from $18 billion to about $11 billion, while also enhancing and streamlining the company's core power-generation business. "Our progress as a company has been truly remarkable," Doody said in a December 2007 press release announcing that the company's reorganization plan had been approved by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. He declined to comment for this article.

In 2008 Doody was richly rewarded for his efforts with a combined cash bonus of $9.4 million, which was part of the company's "Emergence Incentive Plan." He was one of about 20 senior executives eligible to receive such bonuses. But Doody left Calpine in August last year after a new chief executive, Jack Fusco, was brought in to replace Robert May. Doody had worked previously with May at HealthSouth.

It's unclear whether Doody was terminated or chose to leave Calpine. But according to court documents, executives who left the company voluntarily would have to forfeit their "Emergence Incentive Plan" bonus, and Doody did not. A spokesperson for Doody said that "with the successful completion of Calpine's restructuring and the appointment of a new CEO, it was a logical time for a transition."

Doody's skills as a bankruptcy expert are still in high demand, though. In December, Doody joined St. Louis-based Charter Communications Inc., to help the company emerge from bankruptcy as its general counsel and chief restructuring officer. Charter had sought bankruptcy protection in March 2008 and had racked up more than $21 billion in debt by year-end. Doody is now responsible for overseeing Charter's restructuring activities.

Subscribe to Corporate Counsel