Large Cap

  • April 26, 2024

    Insurers Want Ch. 11 Plan Docs In Kidde-Fenwal Case

    Insurers that provide coverage to bankrupt fire suppression company Kidde-Fenwal Inc. have asked a Delaware court to access drafts of the Chapter 11 plan the company has provided to unsecured creditors in ongoing mediation, saying they need to know how the plan could affect them.

  • April 26, 2024

    Republic First Bank Fails In Biggest Bust Since 2023 Turmoil

    Republic First Bank, a roughly $6 billion bank based in Philadelphia, was shuttered Friday by Pennsylvania state banking regulators and sold to Fulton Bank NA, capping off a prolonged decline that only worsened in the wake of last spring's regional bank failures.

  • April 26, 2024

    Invitae Defends Its Ch. 11 Hire Of Kirkland Against DQ Bid

    Bankrupt genetic-testing company Invitae Corporation has told a New Jersey bankruptcy judge that attempts to disqualify Kirkland & Ellis LLP as its bankruptcy counsel are baseless and no conflicts exist for the firm due to its representation of a creditor in other legal matters.

  • April 26, 2024

    3% Stalking Horse Breakup Fee Ok'd In Eye Care Ch. 11

    A Texas bankruptcy judge has approved protections for optometry software company Eye Care Leaders Portfolio Holdings LLC's stalking horse bidder, allowing the company to pay private equity firm Create Capital a 3% breakup fee on its $11 million offer.

  • April 25, 2024

    McDermott Judge U-Turns, Says Some Investors Deserve Cert.

    A Texas federal magistrate judge reversed his recommendation that investors be denied class certification in litigation over McDermott International's $6 billion merger with Chicago Bridge & Iron, saying a former CB&I shareholder class "should be certified now" and a putative McDermott stock purchaser class be created for subsequent consideration.

  • April 25, 2024

    Joann Fabric Wins Confirmation Of Prepackaged Ch. 11 Plan

    Joann Inc., parent company of retailer Joann Fabric and Crafts, received a Delaware judge's approval of its prepackaged Chapter 11 plan Thursday that will lighten its debt load by $505 million.

  • April 25, 2024

    3rd Circ. Lets Mallinckrodt Off Sanofi's Royalty Hook

    A Third Circuit panel said Thursday that Mallinckrodt PLC's Chapter 11 bankruptcy could sever its obligation to pay Sanofi-Aventis US LLC royalties on sales of an autoimmune disease drug, finding that Sanofi's contract to sell Mallinckrodt the rights to the drug created a claim ripe to be extinguished.

  • April 25, 2024

    DOJ Still Owes Victims After $139M Nassar Settlement

    The federal government's $139 million settlement for victims of convicted sexual abuser Larry Nassar goes a long way toward holding the FBI responsible for its egregious mishandling of the victims' allegations, but gives no assurance that such complaints in the future will be handled properly, legal experts say.

  • April 25, 2024

    Labcorp Makes $239M Bid In Invitae's Ch. 11 Auction

    SoftBank-backed genetic testing company Invitae has informed a New Jersey bankruptcy judge that its asset sale auction resulted in a successful $239 million cash bid, along with other noncash considerations, from laboratory services giant Labcorp.

  • April 24, 2024

    Jury Must Decide Law Firms' Fee Dispute Over Nassar Suits

    A jury will need to decipher the terms of an agreement in a fee dispute between Andrus Wagstaff PC and Lipton Law Center PC for joint representation of the survivors of former USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar, a Michigan federal judge ruled Wednesday, partially rejecting Andrus Wagstaff's summary judgment bid.

  • April 24, 2024

    Kwok Jurors To Be Anonymous Amid Harassment Concerns

    Jurors who will decide the criminal fraud and racketeering case against exiled Chinese billionaire Ho Wan Kwok will be anonymous and partially sequestered, a New York federal judge said on Wednesday, ruing that if their identities are revealed they could face the same harassment that befell Kwok's bankruptcy trustee.

  • April 24, 2024

    Nuclear Fuel Co. Investor Sues Over Hair-Trigger 'Poison Pill'

    A Centrus Energy Corp. stockholder on Wednesday hit the company, as well as current and former directors, with a proposed class action in Delaware Chancery Court, challenging allegedly hair-trigger shareholder rights "poison pill" restrictions that activate anti-takeover measures based on a relatively low share ownership percentage.

  • April 24, 2024

    Noteholders Say Chilean Telecom Lacks US Ties For Ch. 11

    A group of WOM SA noteholders asked a Delaware bankruptcy judge to dismiss the Chilean cellphone network operator's Chapter 11 case, saying the company has no connections with the United States and courts here don't have jurisdiction over the company's assets.

  • April 24, 2024

    Oligarch's Family Can't Nix €1.5B Bankruptcy Bid

    The widow and a daughter of the late Russian cement oligarch Oleg Bourlakov stumbled in their global legal battle with relatives over his fortune after a London judge declined to stop €1.48 billion ($1.59 billion) bankruptcy proceedings in St. Petersburg.

  • April 24, 2024

    7th Circ. Revives Suit Over Paper Co.'s ESOP Valuation

    The Seventh Circuit reopened a suit claiming executives at a defunct paper company and financial advisers overvalued the business to persuade workers to put retirement savings into an employee stock ownership plan, saying a lower court viewed the allegations too narrowly when it tossed the case.

  • April 23, 2024

    WeWork Urged To Add Info Ahead Of Ch. 11 Plan Doc Hearing

    Bankrupt flexible office space company WeWork Inc. will present its Chapter 11 plan disclosure statement for court approval April 29 in New Jersey, but a judge there urged the debtor to add significant information to the document ahead of that hearing, which the court scheduled on shortened notice.

  • April 23, 2024

    Del. Atty Tapped To Probe Oakland Diocese's Ch. 11 Fees

    A California bankruptcy judge Tuesday gave his blessing to appoint a fee examiner in the Chapter 11 bankruptcy of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Oakland despite his initial trepidation over hiring a Delaware lawyer with potential connections to the lawyers whose bills will be under the microscope.

  • April 23, 2024

    Retailer Express Inc. Gets OK To Tap $35M In DIP Financing

    A Delaware bankruptcy judge on Tuesday said she would approve Express Inc.'s request to borrow $35 million in debtor-in-possession financing and to roll up other debt so that the apparel retailer can stay afloat during its Chapter 11 proceedings and a planned sale of assets.

  • April 23, 2024

    ABI Names Christopher Ward President, Elects New Directors

    Christopher A. Ward of Polsinelli LLP will lead the American Bankruptcy Institute as president for a one-year term, the organization said Tuesday, and U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Bruce Harwood will succeed him next April.

  • April 23, 2024

    DOJ Unveils $139M Deal For Larry Nassar Victims

    The U.S. Department of Justice will pay $138.7 million to settle 139 tort claims accusing the Federal Bureau of Investigation of not doing enough to stop the sprawling, decades-long sexual abuse of hundreds of victims at the hands of USA Gymnastics physician Larry Nassar, according to a Tuesday announcement.

  • April 22, 2024

    Alex Jones' InfoWars To Have Key Ch. 11 Plan Hearing In June

    A Texas bankruptcy judge on Monday rescheduled to June 14 a key hearing on how the court should handle Alex Jones' media company Free Speech Systems LLC's Chapter 11, adding that he plans to keep the separate but interwoven bankruptcies of Jones and his company moving forward.

  • April 22, 2024

    Subchapter V Report, Express Hits Ch. 11, NY Diocese Fallout

    The American Bankruptcy Institute held its annual spring meeting last week, where a task force on Subchapter V presented its report and recommendations on small-business bankruptcy filings, and clothing retailer Express Inc. landed in Chapter 11 with more than $1 billion in debt.

  • April 22, 2024

    Endo Creditor Trust Asks For $50M In Litigation Financing

    The committee of unsecured creditors in the Chapter 11 case of pharmaceutical company Endo International asked a New York bankruptcy judge Monday for permission to enter into a $50 million secondary financing facility to help the creditor trust created under the company's bankruptcy plan pursue litigation and settlements of potential claims.

  • April 22, 2024

    Ebix Can Use Proceeds Of $386M Sale To Pay Down Debt

    A Texas bankruptcy judge on Monday agreed to grant insurance software provider Ebix's request to tap a portion of the $386 million sale of its North American life and annuity assets to repay its prepetition lenders' secured claims.

  • April 22, 2024

    Clothing Retailer Express Inc. Hits Ch. 11 With Sale Offer

    Fashion retailer Express Inc. filed for Chapter 11 protection Monday in Delaware to help tame roughly $1.2 billion in debt, saying it has an offer from a group of buyers for the majority of its assets, including its retail store locations.

Expert Analysis

  • Ch. 11 Case Shows Why Plan Acceptance Procedures Are Key

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    Sunland Medical's recent liquidation plan proposal is an important example of how top-notch judges and attorneys propose and analyze complex issues during the confirmation process, and the bankruptcy court was forward-thinking to consider the implications of such proposed treatment in the face of the Bankruptcy Code, says Kyle Arendsen at Squire Patton.

  • Risks Of Rejecting Hotel Mgmt. Agreements Via Bankruptcy

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    In recent years, hotel owners have paid a high price when they attempted to use bankruptcy proceedings to prematurely terminate their hotel management agreements, highlighting that other options may be preferable, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

  • NC Rulings Show Bankruptcy Isn't Only For Insolvent Debtors

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    Two recent rulings from a North Carolina bankruptcy court show that lack of financial distress is not a requirement for bankruptcy protection, particularly in the Fourth Circuit, but these types of cases can still be dismissed for other reasons, say Stuart Gordon and Alexandria Vath at Rivkin Radler.

  • What Bankruptcy Deadline Appeal May Mean For Claimants

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    If the Third Circuit reverses a recent appeal made in In re: Promise Healthcare, litigation claimants within the circuit will not be able to rely on the proof of claim process to preserve the claim — but if the court affirms, the U.S. Supreme Court may need to step in to resolve the circuit split on this issue, say attorneys at DLA Piper.

  • Spartan Arbitration Tactics Against Well-Funded Opponents

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    Like the ancient Spartans who held off a numerically superior Persian army at the Battle of Thermopylae, trial attorneys and clients faced with arbitration against an opponent with a bigger war chest can take a strategic approach to create a pass to victory, say Kostas Katsiris and Benjamin Argyle at Venable.

  • Wesco Ch. 11 Ruling Marks Shift In Uptier Claim Treatment

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    A Texas bankruptcy court’s recent decision in In re: Wesco Aircraft Holdings leaves nonparticipating creditors with a road map to litigate to judgment non-pro rata liability management transactions, and foreshadows that bankruptcy courts may no longer be a friendly forum for these types of claims, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • Charting The Course For Digital Assets In 2024

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    Although 2023 was a tough year for the digital asset industry, upcoming court decisions, legislation and regulatory action will bring clarity, allowing the industry to expand and evolve, and the government will decide what innovation it will allow without challenge, says Joshua Smeltzer at Gray Reed.

  • Del. Ruling Shows Tension Between 363 Sale And Labor Law

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    The Delaware federal court's ruling in the Braeburn Alloy Steel case highlights the often overlooked collision between an unstayed order authorizing an asset sale free and clear of successor liability under Section 363 of the Bankruptcy Code and federal labor law imposing successor liability on the buyer, say attorneys at Proskauer.

  • How Clients May Use AI To Monitor Attorneys

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    Artificial intelligence tools will increasingly enable clients to monitor and evaluate their counsel’s activities, so attorneys must clearly define the terms of engagement and likewise take advantage of the efficiencies offered by AI, says Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein.

  • Del. Insurance Co. Liquidation Reveals Recovery Strategies

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    Arrowood's recent liquidation in the Delaware Chancery Court offers a positive development for policyholders and claimants, providing access to guaranty association protections amid the company's demise, say Timothy Law and Ann Kramer at Reed Smith.

  • The Pop Culture Docket: Judge D'Emic On Moby Grape

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    The 1968 Moby Grape song "Murder in My Heart for the Judge" tells the tale of a fictional defendant treated with scorn by the judge, illustrating how much the legal system has evolved in the past 50 years, largely due to problem-solving courts and the principles of procedural justice, says Kings County Supreme Court Administrative Judge Matthew D'Emic.

  • Navigating Asset Tracing Challenges In Bankruptcy

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    A Virginia court’s recent ruling in Health Diagnostic Laboratory Inc.'s bankruptcy highlights the heightened demand for asset tracing and the strategic use of the lowest intermediate balance rule in recovering funds from commingled accounts, says Daniel Lowenthal at Patterson Belknap.

  • Lender Agreements And Unitranche Facilities: A Fresh Look

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    Unitranche facilities — which offer blended interest rates in a single loan document — are gaining prevalence, and lenders and borrowers should understand their advantages, as well as concerns over the enforceability of a unitranche-style agreement among lenders in bankruptcy, say attorneys at Mayer Brown.