Paul Weiss Conflicted in Forever 21 Bankruptcy, Government Says

Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison LLP holds adverse interests to Forever 21 Inc.'s US retail operator and shouldn’t be permitted to represent the company in bankruptcy, the Justice Department’s bankruptcy division said.

The liquidating retailer’s application to retain Paul Weiss as special corporate and finance counsel in Chapter 11 must be denied because the law firm has for years provided counsel to the brand’s equity holders and parent company, Catalyst Brands, the US Trustee’s office said in a court filing Friday.

The firm holds or represents an “adverse interest” under relevant bankruptcy law or is not a “disinterested person,” ...