According to a database produced by the federal Small Business Administration and Treasury Department, several local law firms have accepted millions of dollars in Paycheck Protection Program funds as part of the Cares Act.
The database does not provide specific amounts received by businesses, but does provide a range. The maximum amount received was $5-10 million.
Two local firms received the maximum relief: defense firms Sandberg Phoenix & von Gontard and Armstrong Teasdale of St. Louis. Both firms reported that hundreds of jobs were supported with the funds. Armstrong Teasdale reported that 424 jobs were supported with the funds, with Sandberg Phoenix reporting 295 jobs supported.
Two Edwardsville firms received $2-5 million: asbestos plaintiff firm The Gori Law Firm and defense firm HeplerBroom. The Gori Law Firm reported that 194 jobs were supported with the funds while HeplerBroom did not report any jobs supported.
The Gori Law Firm has maintained its title as the largest asbestos filer in Madison County, the nation’s epicenter of asbestos litigation, since at least 2016. The firm was shaken earlier this year when founder Randy Gori was murdered in his rural Edwardsville home on Jan. 4.
Heyl Roster, a defense firm out of Peoria with an office in Edwardsville, also received $2-5 million in relief funds and reported 276 jobs supported.
No firms out of St. Clair County received amounts over $1 million.
Several St. Louis-based firms that practice in Madison and St. Clair counties received $2-5 million, including Brown & Crouppen, Evans & Dixon LLC, Greensfelder Hemker & Gale, Lewis Rice LLC, and Maune Raichle Hartley French & Mudd.
St. Louis firms that received $1-2 million in funds include: Korein Tillery LLC, Lashly & Baer PC, Capes Sokol Goodman & Sarachan, Dowd Bennett, and Carmody Macdonald PC.
Illinois firms receiving between $350,000 and $1 million include: Flint Law Firm and Goldenberg Heller & Antognoli in Edwardsville, among others.
Most local firms receiving more than $150,000 accepted funds between $150,000 and $350,000, including Keefe Keefe & Unsell in Belleville, Blake Behme Law Group in Belleville, Clayborne & Wagner in Belleville, Cook Bartholomew Shevlin Cook & Jones in Belleville, Donovan Rose Nester PC in Belleville, Nelson & Nelson in Belleville, Byron Carlson Petri & Calb in Edwardsville, Knapp Ohl & Green in Edwardsville, Sherer Law Offices in Edwardsville, Tor Hoerman Law in Edwardsville, and Walton Telken in Edwardsville, among others.
The $2 trillion CARES Act, or Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, was passed March 27 and is one of the largest economic relief packages by the federal government.
"The CARES Act provides fast and direct economic assistance for American workers and families, small businesses, and preserves jobs for American industries," the U.S. Department of the Treasury websites states.
The $659 billion Paycheck Protection Program was established by the CARES Act and "provides small businesses with funds to pay up to 8 weeks of payroll costs including benefits. Funds can also be used to pay interest on mortgages, rent, and utilities," according to the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
"The Paycheck Protection Program is providing small businesses with the resources they need to maintain their payroll, hire back employees who may have been laid off, and cover applicable overhead," the website states.