Anthony Lin of the NYLJ reports today that the Weil Gotshal Legal Malpractice case has ended.

"A Texas bankruptcy judge has thrown out a suit against Weil, Gotshal & Manges by a former client who had accused the New York law firm of steering it into a "disastrous" Chapter 11 filing.

The National Benevolent Association, the social services arm of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), filed for bankruptcy in 2004, becoming one of the largest non-profit organizations to have ever done so. The St. Louis, Mo.-based group shrank dramatically as a result of the bankruptcy, and it claimed in its September 2005 suit against Weil Gotshal that the firm should have explored less disruptive alternatives. The group had sought $40 million in damages.

But in granting summary judgment to the law firm in a decision issued Tuesday, Chief Judge Ronald B. King of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Texas said that the association’s contentions constituted a collateral attack on previous court orders and were barred by the doctrine of res judicata.

The judge noted in particular that the court had previously issued orders confirming the association’s reorganization plan and authorizing the sale of many of the group’s properties. There had already been ample opportunity to litigate the issues raised in the suit against Weil Gotshal, he ruled.

The NYLJ article.