Defunct Stroock Races to Wind Down, Years After Abrupt Collapse

Two years after closing its doors, a once-powerful Wall Street law firm is rushing to officially go out of business.

Stroock & Stroock & Lavan this month urged a New York court to expeditiously bless its wind-down. An attorney representing the defunct firm said it is “critical” that a judge approve its plan to disperse unpaid client funds before the end of the year.

“We make this request because if the dissolution of Stroock is not complete until 2026, it will have significant negative impact on its partners,” the lawyer, Jeffrey Friesen said in a Nov. 10 court filing.

The specific reasons for the rush are not clear. Two former partners, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said they were assured the wind-down would conclude by the end of the year but were unaware of any “negative impact” facing them.

Friesen didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

The 150-year-old law firm abruptly announced in October 2023 that it was going belly up after seeing waves of partners hit the exits and merger talks stall. Stroock’s speedy collapse captured the legal industry’s attention, with some fearing the firm was a canary in the coal mine amid Big Law’s era of massive growth and a pullback from a stretch of brisk demand.

A panel of veteran Stroock partners and its chief financial officer stayed on to see the firm through the wind-down process. By that time, rivals such as Paul Hastings, Hogan Lovells, and Crowell & Moring had already raided the firm’s partner roster, taking some associates with them.

The vast majority of the firm’s unsecured creditors have agreed to a settlement,accepting a portion of the debt they’re owed in exchange for their agreement not to file a claim against the firm, according to one of the former partners.

Bruce Schneider, Stroock’s general counsel and a member of its wind-down committee, declined to comment.

$2.2 Million Returned

Stroock wants New York Supreme Court Judge Paul A. Goetz to permit the firm to send unclaimed client funds to the state by Dec. 15. The firm has two petitions in state trial court seeking judicial approval of a total of nearly $750,000 payments to the New York Lawyers’ Fund for Client Protection, a state agency aimed at protecting legal services clients.

In filings the firm said that it’s made best efforts to return money from client retainers and overpayments following its implosion. Some of the unclaimed funds headed to the state are connected to big names, from JPMorgan Chase and Starwood Capital Group to Revlon and Citigroup.

The firm also said it has successfully returned about $2.2 million to former clients.

“Stroock will shortly cease to exist and can no longer continue to make efforts to locate the owners of the Funds,” the firm said in the filing.

The cases are: In the Matter of the Petition of Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP, N.Y. Sup. Ct., No. 165027/2025, petition to deposit client funds with state 11/18/25 and In the Matter of the Petition of Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP, N.Y. Sup. Ct., No. 161143/2025, letter seeking approval of proposed client fund disbursement order 11/10/25.