“There’s one thing I think we can all agree on: This case makes lawyers look bad,” said Fulton County Superior Court Judge Craig Schwall as a contentious hearing involving a dispute over millions of dollars in attorney fees drew to a close Thursday morning.

Asked to void a confidential arbitration award favoring plaintiffs’ powerhouse Butler Wooten & Peak over former firm partner Robert Cheeley, Schwall noted the high-powered legal talent present and lamented that the case had come before him.