Citizens for a Pro-Business Delaware Slams Skadden Arps’ Robert Pincus as His Egregious Overbilling Is Exposed in Citgo Sale

As “Special Master” of the Citgo Sale, Pincus Has Quickly Exceed $2 Million Fee Cap Ordered by Court

WILMINGTON, Del.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today, following a report that former Chancery Court-appointed TransPerfect custodian and current “special master” overseeing the sale of Citgo’s parent company Robert Pincus has exceeded the court’s $2 million fee cap in the sale process, prompting filings from all parties in the dispute demanding explanation for the excess fees, Citizens for a Pro-Business Delaware Campaign Manager Chris Coffey released the following statement:

“Today’s news confirms what we’ve known for years: Robert Pincus and Skadden Arps are in the business of using their cozy court connections to rip people off. This time, Pincus has blown past a court-mandated $2 million fee cap and because this is Delaware, where nothing works like it should, he expects to just get away with it. Pincus has even pulled off the feat of unifying the rival parties in the dispute, as all the parties involved - including Venezuela, its state-owned oil company PDVSA, ConocoPhillips and Crystallex - have sent letters demanding to know why Pincus blew through the court-mandated cap so quickly.

“We slammed the decision as soon as Pincus was appointed ‘special master’ in the Citgo sale because we knew his MO - latching onto a profitable company and bilking it for millions of dollars. This is only the latest example of Pincus’ egregious billing practices, which have cost TransPerfect and its hard-working employees over $50 million in legal fees in the past half-decade.

“For too long, Pincus’ reckless gamesmanship has been enabled by a toothless Delaware court system that rewards elite corporate law firms at the expense of profitable companies like TransPerfect. It’s time for the courts to do their job and rein in bad actors like Pincus, his attorney Jennifer Voss, and their cronies at Skadden Arps.”

Citizens for a Pro-Business Delaware is a group made up of more than 5,000 members including employees of the global translation services company TransPerfect, as well as concerned Delaware residents, business executives and others. They formed in April of 2016 to focus on raising awareness with Delaware residents, elected officials, and other stakeholders about the unprecedented, forced sale of TransPerfect. While their primary goal of saving the company has been accomplished, they continue their efforts to fight for more transparency in the Delaware Chancery Court. For more information on Citizens for a Pro-Business Delaware or to join the cause, visit DelawareForBusiness.org.