Rock Creek Pharmaceuticals Inc. and two subsidiaries filed for bankruptcy in Delaware last week, owing nearly $3.7 million to lawyers from more than 20 firms, the American Lawyer reported today. Big firms make up half of Rock Creek’s 20 largest unsecured creditors, including legal giants like Chadbourne & Parke; Crowell & Moring; Foley & Lardner; K&L Gates; McGuireWoods; Morgan, Lewis & Bockius; Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom; and Steptoe & Johnson. The Sarasota, Fla.-based biopharmaceutical company, once known for its ties to scandal-plagued former Virginia Gov. Robert McDonnell under its former name Star Scientific Inc., is being advised by Delaware’s Ciardi Ciardi & Astin in its chapter 7 case, a process that usually results in the liquidation of a debtor. John “Jack” McLaughlin Jr., a Ciardi partner advising Rock Creek, did not respond to a request for comment about his client’s outstanding legal bills.
