Connecticut newsprint magnate and art collector Peter Brant is suing the law firm that handled the sale of one of his companies as part of a debt reorganization plan, claiming the lawyers cost him tens of millions in diminished assets to fund a pension plan. In the lawsuit filed in Superior Court in Stamford, Peter M. Brant of Greenwich is seeking an unspecified amount in damages from Shearman & Sterling, which is based in New York City. The professional malpractice lawsuit also names Douglas P. Bartner, a Shearman & Sterling partner, as a defendant.
Brant, of Greenwich is the owner of White Birch Paper Co., which along with his separate SP Newsprint company, filed for bankruptcy protection in 2010. Before his companies sought court protection from creditors, Brant was a billionaire, though he no longer appears on the Forbes magazine list of the richest Americans. Brant is married to the former supermodel Stephanie Seymour.
