RPT-NEWSMAKER-Colorful lawyer says Russia may bid on US defense

(Contains language that may offend some people, paragraph 10)

* Los Angeles lawyer standing by claim of imminent bid

* Has ties to law firm of convicted fraudster Marc Dreier

* John Kirkland unknown to us -- exec of Russia's UAC

* Ex-crocodile wrangler described as hot-tub bon vivant

By Dan Margolies

WASHINGTON, March 22 (Reuters) - The U.S. lawyer who claimed a Russian company planned to bid for a U.S. aerial refueling contract worth up to $50 billion says he is as much a globe-trotting adventurer and knife-wielding hunter of wild animals as he is a typical corporate attorney.

John Kirkland set off a slew of reports by the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post and Reuters when he said an announcement of a bid was imminent, and distributed documents about the Russian plans. One company official later not only denied any such bid but denied knowing of Kirkland. [ID:nLDE62L0AX]

Kirkland, who is sticking with the information he pitched to reporters, is a Los Angeles lawyer in good standing with the California Bar who also fashions himself an author, having compiled a book of love letters by historical figures.

Controversy is not new for Kirkland, who was accused of possible fraud by the trustee in the bankruptcy proceedings of Dreier LLP, the now-defunct law firm founded by Marc Dreier, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence in connection with a $400 million fraud scheme. Kirkland previously worked at the firm.

Kirkland has been a member of at least half a dozen law firms during his legal career, landing at his current employer, Luce Forward Hamilton & Scripps, a few years ago.

Kirkland told the Lawdragon website recently that his practice focused mainly on small-cap public companies in emerging growth areas. The profile also said he had "worked with the Russian government on its first-ever insulin manufacturing facility and of course was invited to go wild boar hunting with President Medvedev's nephew."

On Monday, Russian officials denied Kirkland's claim that state-run United Aviation Corp planned to bid for a $50 billion contract to replace the U.S. Air Force's fleet of air tankers, possibly competing with Boeing (BA.N) and Europe's EADS (EAD.PA).

Kirkland had told the media over the weekend that UAC would announce a joint venture with a U.S. defense contractor on Monday to enter the bidding for the tanker deal. The announcement had not come as of Monday evening.

Kirkland told Reuters on Monday that he was informed about the bid by a man named Alexander Ivanovich, who he believed was an aide to Russian Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov.

"It is very important for me that people know I am not just making shit up. I have (in my possession) written letters from UAC on UAC letterheads with UAC control numbers," Kirkland told Reuters.

Luce Forward released a statement Monday saying Kirkland was engaged several months ago to negotiate a joint venture with UAC. The statement said the proposed joint venture, UAC America Inc, planned to bid on American defense projects beginning with the tanker project.

DREIER TRUSTEE HAS QUESTIONS

In court documents last June, the Dreier bankruptcy trustee said he suspected Kirkland "may be engaging in misappropriation and fraud" and obtained a court order to examine Kirkland under oath.

On Monday, Joseph Maniscalco, an attorney for the bankruptcy trustee, said the matter concerned a payment remitted to the Dreier firm with no attached invoice. The funds, about $300,000, were made payable to Kirkland individually.

Maniscalco said he interviewed Kirkland about three weeks ago and the trustee is now considering whether to depose him under oath.

"To say the least, he's not the most cooperative former partner at the Dreier firm," Maniscalco said.

In 2006, Kirkland, his then-law firm Greenberg Traurig, and former heavyweight boxing champion George Foreman were named in a lawsuit filed by GreatMeals USA Inc, which markets food through mail order sales and cable shopping networks. The suit alleged the defendants conspired to transfer valuable economic opportunities to Kirkland's brother, Victor Kirkland.

It's not clear what happened with the case -- part of it was sent to arbitration. GreatMeals' attorney could not be reached for comment.

BEST-SELLING AUTHOR

Kirkland's bio on Luce Forward's website calls him a best-selling author, an apparent reference to a book he compiled, "Love Letters of Great Men," that was published in 2008. The book contains love letters written by the likes of John Keats, George Washington and Napoleon.

The Lawdragon profile said that the character of Carrie Bradshaw on the popular TV show and movie "Sex and the City" had referred to such a book.

"When Kirkland searched for it and discovered there was no such book, he wrote it himself," the story said.

Promotional material for the book said Kirkland "has driven a dog sled across the Arctic Ocean, dived with sea turtles in the Mediterranean Sea, and pulled a nile crocodile from the Gombe River, but mostly he just sits around in his hot tub drinking Chateau Margaux." (Reporting by Dan Margolies. Additional reporting by Matthew Goldstein in New York and Lisa Baertlein in Los Angeles; Editing by Gary Hill)