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Why (as in yaverbaum)
pation of the litigation victory, the Weil Gotshal firm was therefore charged with developing a list of documents that they thought should be in place, and reviewing and approving them before the first steel ball was to be launched toward a wall. Here I learned one of the great lessons of my career. There were more than 120 documents that the UDC law- yers listed for our review and approval, and I recall sitting through an interminable two days of meetings as each piece of paper was put under a microscope.
That made sense, but they made one mistake, a mistake that dem- onstrated how many lawyers, as smart as they think they are, consume themselves with the paper in minute detail but are absolutely clueless when it comes to the reality of what really counts: at no time did the incredibly self-confident and overbearing Weil Gotshal attorneys ask for a demonstration that the owning partnership had an enforceable commitment for the contribution by Marriott of the capital that it clearly needed to go forward. This was a good thing, because, at that point, although Marriott had agreed to the form of the partnership and management agreements, there was absolutely nothing that obligated it to come up with the requisite funds. The partnership was without the first dollar of capital. Celebrating at Trader Vic’s that night, Flora and I took great pleasure in the fact that the most self-important firm in New York had failed when it came to the most important and most basic of tests.
Litigation would end in victory for Portman if there would be a denial by the United States Supreme Court of the opponents’ petition for certiorari, something that was expected to occur on a Monday morn- ing. Anticipating the decision and the demolition of these semi-historic buildings, I took Danny and Peter to the City during the weekend to see the barricaded site and the booth that had been erected on the adjacent sidewalk by the protesters (who included, among many others, Christo- pher Reeve, Joseph Papp, Colleen Dewhurst, and Ellen Burstyn). We delighted in taking some photos.
It was an interesting outing but not as interesting as the job that fell • 436 •