Kirkland & Ellis has received a stinging rebuke for misrepresentation, wasting court time and overcharging by a US bankruptcy judge, who has ordered the leading firm’s multi-million dollar fee for a recent case to be slashed.

The $25m bill was submitted by the Chicago giant together with joint-counsel Pachulski Stang Ziehl Young Jones & Weintraub for three months of work representing debtors Fleming Companies.