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Did Someone Create a Company for the Sole Purpose of Giving Mitt Romney a Million Bucks?
Perhaps! During its short lifespan, W Spann LLC, formed by Boston estate tax lawyer Cameron Casey, appears to have done little other than make a $1 million contribution to Restore Our Future, a Romney super PAC. The company, which was formed in March and dissolved in July, listed a Manhattan address where there is no evidence it was ever a tenant, nor is there otherwise much of a paper trail on W Spann LLC. For instance, there’s no description on its official filing of what the company existed to do (presumably, “funnel money to Mitt Romney” would not have been smart to write), nor are any clients listed.
The company was formed and dissolved by a Boston lawyer, Cameron Casey of Ropes & Gray. According to her online bio, Casey provides “comprehensive estate planning advice to high-net-worth individuals and families” and “advises nonprofit organizations and their donors with respect to charitable planning matters.”
The law firm has other connections to Romney. R. Bradford Malt, a partner with Ropes & Gray, has served as the trustee for blind trusts set up by Romney and his wife, Ann. And John Montgomery, another partner at the firm, represented Romney in 2002 when Democrats unsuccessfully challenged Romney’s residency during his campaign for Massachusetts governor.
In the FEC filing, W Spann LLC listed an address of 590 Madison Avenue in New York, but there are no state business records on file pertaining to the company. A phone call to building manager Minskoff Equities said it had no records of the firm as a tenant.
When asked about the legality of the W Spann setup, a rather bewildered-sounding former FEC general counsel said “I don’t see how you can do this.” So whatever legal action might follow, at least their creativity isn’t going unrecognized.
MSNBC – Firm gives $1 million to pro-Romney group, then dissolves
The American Lawyer: Ropes & Gray working for Mitt Romney & Bain Capital
Other strong points for the firm, which is spread out over ten domestic and international offices, include securities litigation, health law, labor and employment, and tax and benefits. And Ropes’s chair, R. Bradford Malt, does all the tax planning for Mitt Romney, whose former company, Bain Capital, is a major Ropes & Gray client. The firm represented Bain in its $26 billion acquisition of Clear Channel Communications in 2008, its $3.5 billion purchase of The Weather Channel in 2008, and a $1.8 billion transaction for Gymboree Corporation in 2010.
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- Vanity Fair on Romney: Where the Money Lives
"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."