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Enron Corp. - University of California | Office of The President

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810. During 12/97, Vinson & Elkins also made changes to the structure <strong>of</strong> the transaction<br />

to allow <strong>Enron</strong> to avoid disclosing the existence <strong>of</strong> <strong>Enron</strong>'s financial relationship with Chewco.<br />

Vinson & Elkins converted the General Partner <strong>of</strong> Chewco from a limited liability company to a<br />

limited partnership, and put Kopper in instead <strong>of</strong> Fastow as the owner <strong>of</strong> Chewco's general partner.<br />

<strong>The</strong> sole purpose for this structural change was to allow non-disclosure <strong>of</strong> the Chewco/JEDI<br />

transactions at year end 97. However, prior to the closing <strong>of</strong> Chewco, Kopper expressed concern<br />

over his improper conflict <strong>of</strong> interest since he was an <strong>Enron</strong> employee and would act as the owner<br />

<strong>of</strong> both the general partner <strong>of</strong> Chewco and the owner <strong>of</strong> the equity <strong>of</strong> limited partner, Big River<br />

Funding. Notwithstanding the fact Kopper complained to Vinson & Elkins about the sham<br />

transaction, it went ahead and structured the transaction as proposed. Vinson & Elkins never<br />

withdrew from its involvement in the scheme or insisted on disclosure <strong>of</strong> this conflict <strong>of</strong> interest in<br />

<strong>Enron</strong>'s SEC filings – despite this clear red flag <strong>of</strong> its impropriety.<br />

Vinson & Elkins Participated In Structuring<br />

the Illicit Partnership and SPE Deals<br />

811. <strong>The</strong>n, in 99, <strong>Enron</strong> and Vinson & Elkins engaged and participated in the creation <strong>of</strong><br />

the two LJM partnerships for <strong>Enron</strong> that <strong>Enron</strong> and its CFO Fastow controlled. Over the next<br />

few years, <strong>Enron</strong> engaged in a series <strong>of</strong> transactions – which were, in fact, manipulative devices<br />

– between <strong>Enron</strong> and the LJM partnerships and LJM SPEs which resulted in <strong>Enron</strong> inflating its<br />

reported financial results by more than a billion dollars – at the same time enriching Fastow and<br />

his friends and several <strong>of</strong> <strong>Enron</strong>'s bankers who were allowed to invest in the LJM2 partnership<br />

– by tens <strong>of</strong> millions <strong>of</strong> dollars. Vinson & Elkins knew that the reason for establishing these<br />

partnerships was that they would permit <strong>Enron</strong> to accomplish transactions it could not otherwise<br />

accomplish with an independent entity, by providing <strong>Enron</strong> with a buyer <strong>of</strong> assets that <strong>Enron</strong><br />

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