DECHERT’S COURTROOM DRAMA -  Among the longest running and most expensive law firm litigations ever seen, the ENRC v. Dechert U.K. courtroom saga has been a whirlwind case that could cause lasting damage to one of the world’s most reputable and profitable law firms, Law.com International’s Krishan Nair reports. On Monday, London’s High Court handed down a judgment, finding that Dechert and its former white collar head, Neil Gerrard, had committed deliberate and unlawful acts in a bid to extract maximum profit from their client, London-headquartered mining company ENRC. Over its more than 10-year timeline, the case has produced the kind of intrigue you would sooner find in an espionage thriller: secret meetings, burner phones, a brown envelope, millions of dollars, false advice, conspiring public officials, claims of amnesia, and, of course, a victim. But for Dechert, the consequences are anything but a fiction. It faces potential liabilities that could become substantially more than the tens of millions of pounds already racked up, and a reputational hit that could hurt its standing as a globally trusted adviser. With causation and loss still up in the air, the saga is far from over.

WHAT YOU SAID

“The only thing consistent about him is the sense that he’s always going to surprise you. He’s a rather unusual person, but that’s part of what makes him so intriguing.”

— Charles Elson, attorney and retired University of Delaware professor, on Elon Musk and  his history of giving the lawyers he works with heartburn.