Miller is a partner at the prominent New York firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges. He is primarily known as one of the “deans” of the bankruptcy bar, having built Weil Gotshal into the premier firm for handling bankruptcies.
And that reputation has served the firm well, as Weil was tapped to handle the largest corporate bankruptcy in the history of the United States — troubled firm Lehman Brothers.
Mr. Miller was born on March 1st of 1933 in New York City. He got a BA from Brooklyn College in 1953 and his JD from Columbia in 1959. He joined Weil Gotshal in 1969.
During his tenure at Weil, Mr. Miller built the firm into a bankruptcy and restructuring powerhouse. Focused on the debtor side of the bankruptcy equation, Miller led the bankruptcies of both Texaco Inc. and Continental Airlines. The Wall Street Journal has quoted one of Miller’s peers as stating that Miller is “one of a handful of people responsible for the development of modern bankruptcy practice.”
Before the Lehman Brothers collapse, Harvey Miller led the bankruptcy efforts of the last major investment bank to go under, Drexel Burnham Lambert Inc.
So Harvey Miller is the best of the best when it comes to bankruptcy. He has been a managing partner of Weil Gotshal for over 25 years.
In 2003, Miller left Weil Gotshal for merchant banking firm Greenhill & Co. LLP, where he was a managing director and also vice-chairman. In 2007, he returned to Weis Gotshal — just in time to help Weis Gotshal get the biggest bankruptcy ever.
In addition to his regular bankruptcy and partner duties, Miller is an adjunct professor of law at New York University Law School, and also a lecturer in law at Columbia University School of Law. He has also taught at Yale Law School, and has published numerous texts in the restructuring and bankruptcy field.
Mr. Miller has been ranked as a “Senior Statesman” in bankruptcy in New York by Chambers USA, and according to the Legal 500 US 2008 edition, Miller is the top ranked lawyer in finance for corporate restructuring.
With the Lehman Brothers news, and probable further large bankruptcies to come, Harvey Miller is, at age 75, more relevant and more powerful than ever.
