Milberg is vigorously opposing a former partner’s attempts to extract money from the firm after a merger, claiming that his demands would “pose a grave danger” to the firm’s ability to continue representing clients.

The firm pointed to pressures—including lower profits and increasing competition—that led to a “strategic partnership” announced last year, and said the new Milberg firm created through the combination, Milberg Tadler Phillips Grossman, hasn’t made any distributions of profits to partners.