WeWork hasn’t paid certain landlords January rent as part of its negotiation strategy, lawyers representing the creditor committee in bankruptcy said in a court filing Tuesday.

The co-working company is withholding January rent payments of about $33 million “in an effort to strong-arm negotiations with certain landlords,”while receiving fees from its members that occupy the space, according to the bankruptcy court filing.

The lawyers said in the filing that while they understand WeWork’s need to rationalize its lease portfolio as part of financial restructuring, the bankruptcy code clearly states that while in bankruptcy, rent payments for unrejected leases must be paid.