Ex-Bankruptcy Judge to Be Deposed in Court Over Romance Scandal

Houston’s chief bankruptcy judge will oversee a multifaceted deposition of his former colleague, David R. Jones, related to Jones’ relationship with a onetime Jackson Walker LLP attorney.

Judge Eduardo V. Rodriguez of the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas on Saturday laid out a thorough plan to referee the questioning of Jones and his former case manager as part of a Justice Department-led effort to claw back more than $13 million in fees that Jackson Walker collected in cases handled by Jones while the firm employed his girlfriend, Elizabeth Freeman.

The scope and nature of the depositions became highly scrutinized due to concerns that the questioning and testimony may violate regulations restricting the disclosure of official judicial information or records. Jones, Freeman and Jackson Walker for months have been entangled in a sprawling web of legal proceedings stemming from the romance scandal.

In a 65-page ruling, Rodriguez ticked through dozens of deposition topics proposed by Jackson Walker and the Justice Department’s bankruptcy monitoring division—the US Trustee—focusing largely on the couple’s relationship and Jones’ actions as a judge or judicial mediator in cases involving Freeman.

The majority of topics for questioning don’t implicate the judiciary regulations and can be freely asked, Rodriguez found. And while some topics, like Jones’ rulings on matters involving Freeman and Jackson Walker, do tread into “certain information that normally would be absolutely prohibited,” the court will allow certain questions “within the parameters of a court-supervised deposition,” Rodriguez said.

“There is a delicate line as envisioned by the Judiciary Regulations between permittable information that may be obtained from former judges and information that is off limits,” he said. “However, this line shifts when misconduct plagues the courts. As this is a unique case, certain information that normally would be absolutely prohibited may be asked, as limited by the Court, and as limited by applicable privileges if properly raised.”

Despite finding several topics aren’t subject to judiciary regulations—including whether others at Jackson Walker or in the Houston legal community knew about the relationship—Rodriguez said the totality of the depositions should be court supervised “to promote expediency and efficiency” and make determinations should the questions start to veer into judicially sensitive areas.

Additionally, the judge said Jones must produce documents regarding the overlap of personal assets and finances between him and Freeman. Jones’ former case manager, Albert Alonzo, must also produce relevant records in his possession regarding the once-secret relationship. Any document requests related to Jones’ acts as a judge in cases involving Freeman or Jackson Walker are to be filed under seal and reviewed for permissibility, Rodriguez said.

The ruling also grants the J.C. Penney bankruptcy estate administrator permission to ask questions under court supervision about any private communications Jones had with others about the retailer’s 2020 Chapter 11 case. The administrator is investigating claims that Jones’ relationship with Freeman, whose former firm represented the company in bankruptcy, may have harmed the estate.

Jones, who was instrumental in raising the national profile of the Houston bankruptcy court during his 12 years on the bench, resigned last year after admitting that he was romantically involved with Freeman and that the two shared a home. Freeman, who formerly clerked for Jones before joining Jackson Walker in 2018, left the firm in late 2022.

The case is Professional Fee Matters Concerning the Jackson Walker Law Firm, Bankr. S.D. Tex., No. 23-00645, Opinion 8/24/24.