"Money To Burn" by William Cohan - How Damaging for Paul, Weiss?

What might go down as the non-fiction version of Tom Wolfe's novel "Bonfire of the Vanities" - "Money To Burn" - is out today. 

By William Cohan, also author of "House of Cards," it could have more reach than Wolfe's. That's because the focus isn't only on Wall Street players. The lawyers who serve them so aggressively are also looped into this engaging conversational narrative.

The issue of reach is key in how damaging this tell-all could be for the Drexel alumni, especially Leon Black, and the dedicated elite attorneys. Time will tell how much traction it will have. For example, there's the old question: Can a book be a game-changer? Sure, Wolfe's satire got us to deride the arrogant Wall Street types. But Wall Street continued unabated as a builder of individual and institutional wealth.

The other critical variable in terms of reputational hits and more is how much new information is disclosed. If it is the same-old, many will put the book down after the first 20 or 40 pages.

Well, from the buzz, I know there has already been interest in any impact "Money To Burn" would have on the law firm Paul, Weiss.

1. It had been Leon Black's law firm for a long time. In a 2022 interview with BusinessInsider it was announced that Black was no longer a client.

2. Apollo, which is a major subject in the book, had been a Paul, Weiss client since 2008. That relationship was significantly expanded in 2011. That was when it poached from O'Melvey & Myers partners doing the heavy lifting on the Apollo account. Currently Apollo is a lucrative client for Paul, Weiss.

3. During the past several years Paul, Weiss has attracted more than the average sticky kind of controversy elite law firms get saddled with and can't easily shake. 

SPOILER ALERT

Well, new chair Scott Barshay isn't featured. 

But former chair and now rainmaking partner Brad Karp is. It might have been known before "Money To Burn" that Paul, Weiss created the infamous October 2015 NDA that triggered so much high-profile litigation. That was between Black and his long-time mistress Guzel Ganieva. That was an agreement not to reveal that the romantic relationship had taken place. The book reveals Karp actually created the NDA.

Pages 509 to 510 report:

"It [NDA] had been written by Brad Karp ... But he [Black] wouldn't let her keep it. He wanted her to sign two copies, one for him and one for Karp."

In exchange she was to receive $21 million, over 15 years. 

Much of the fallout from this we already know, including Karp's lawyerly guidance for his client.

So, we now move on to the question of reach. How much attention will Paul, Weiss critics pay to this snippet? There's not much else or maybe nothing new about the law firm or Karp in the book. And there's a lot of juicy drilling down on other things we know and don't know.

My take is that neither Paul, Weiss nor Karp will absorb more heat. The firm is making tons of money. It just poached another star from rival Kirkland & Ellis. As for Karp, already his branding has been reset as a brilliant innovative lawyer and that's that.  If you can afford him, you want him.  In addition to Apollo, Citi and the NFL want him. 

Meanwhile, the hardback copy of "Money To Burn" is made to lay back with on the sofa and enjoy being transported into another world, as reading text was meant to be, by an engrossing story. It starts with Black being an excellent student of philosophy in college and a guy who hated Harvard Business School. 

The narrative may give us insight in how we ourselves are changing during these chaotic times. In coaching, most clients suffer from their reluctance to leave the only success they have known in order to even financially survive.

Full Disclosure: I have been analyzing Paul, Weiss since 2019.

Careers. Forget all that. It’s about earning a good living, no matter what.

Complimentary consultation with Jane Genova, StreetSmart Coaching (janegenova374@gmail.com)



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