Firm Overview
Areas of Practice
Attorneys
Representative Clients
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Adam P. Merrill, Partner
Mr. Merrill joined Sperling & Slater as a partner after spending several years, both as a litigation partner and an associate, at the Chicago office of Kirkland & Ellis. Mr. Merrill has expertise in several areas of litigation, including complex commercial litigation, corporate investigations, bankruptcy and insolvency, trade secret, accountant malpractice, antitrust, ERISA, tax, consumer fraud, RICO, securities and federal criminal cases. He has investigated, pursued and settled claims on behalf of several bankrupt and insolvent entities. He has represented numerous clients in connection with government investigations. Prior to attending law school, Mr. Merrill worked as an auditor for Price Waterhouse.
Education
J.D., cum laude, Brigham Young University, 1995 (member of the Law Review)
B.S. in Accounting, cum laude, Brigham Young University, 1991
Representative Matters
Complex Commercial Litigation
Representative matters include post merger and acquisition disputes such as Hartz Consumer Group v. JWC Hartz Holdings in the New York state courts (2003-2005); non-competition and trade secret matters such as The Proctor & Gamble Co. v. Stoneham in the Ohio state courts (1999); antitrust matters such as Sanner v. Board of Trade of the City of Chicago in the federal district court for the Northern District of Illinois (1995-1999); and RICO litigation such as General Motors Acceptance Corporation v. Shorewood Towers and Ameritech Mobile Communications, Inc. v. Thomas-Rathor, also in the Northern District of Illinois (1997-1998).
Bankruptcy and Insolvency Litigation
Since 2000, Mr. Merrill has represented PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, as receiver of Independent Trust Corp., an insolvent Illinois trust company. As part of this representation, Mr. Merrill helped to secure a $68 million judgment against directors, officers and related companies, and investigated and pursued several “property of the estate” actions. Mr. Merrill has also served as litigation counsel to debtors and committees, including Williams Communications Group, Inc.; NRG Energy, Inc.; Jitney Jungle Stores of America, Inc.; and Reliance Acceptance Corporation. As part of these matters, Mr. Merrill spent substantial time investigating, pursuing, and settling potential claims available to the debtors and creditors, including fraudulent transfer, preference, and reclamation actions. Mr. Merrill also represented an accounting firm in a suit brought by the liquidator of a failed Illinois insurance company. Shapo v. KPMG, LLP (Illinois state court).
Corporate Investigations
Mr. Merrill has conducted internal investigations and represented numerous clients in connection with investigations conducted by government entities, including the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the U.S. Department of Labor, and the Illinois Department of Insurance. Representative clients include PricewaterhouseCoopers, Mercury Finance Co., and several other public and private companies. As part of these matters, Mr. Merrill, among other things, represented officers and employees during interviews with government attorneys and agents and as part of negotiations in connection with grand jury proceedings.
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Adam P. Merrill
312-641-3200
amerrill@sperling-law.com
Sperling & Slater
55 West Monroe Street
Suite 3200
Chicago, Illinois 60603
312-641-3200
fax: 312-641-6492
info@sperling-law.com
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