Practice Areas
Bankruptcy
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January 27, 2012
Dynegy Examiner Granted Broad Subpoena Powers
A New York bankruptcy judge on Friday granted a request by the recently appointed examiner in Dynegy Holdings LLC's prebankruptcy reorganization for broad subpoena powers he said he needed to complete his probe under tight time constraints.
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January 27, 2012
Coach America Rolls Onto Auction Block In Ch. 11
A Delaware bankruptcy judge gave Coach America Holdings Inc. the green light to auction its assets Friday after the charter bus giant’s efforts to restructure a hefty debt burden met with little success.
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January 27, 2012
Trustee Seeks High Court Review Of Garment Antitrust Suit
Factory 2-U Stores Inc.'s Chapter 7 trustee asked the U.S. Supreme Court last week to revive his antitrust suit alleging a group of banks that finance transactions between garment retailers and manufacturers forced the company into bankruptcy.
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January 27, 2012
Defunct Firm Coudert Loses Fight Over Lease Valuation
A New York federal judge ruled Tuesday that real estate advisory firm Weiser Realty Advisors LLC didn't undervalue now-defunct law firm Coudert Brothers LLP's lease on its Manhattan offices by $8 million.
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January 27, 2012
Trident Creditors Object To $55M Sale, $10M Employee Payout
The unsecured creditors in the Delaware bankruptcy case of digital TV semiconductor company Trident Microsystems Inc. objected Thursday to a proposed $55 million stalking horse bid for the company's set-top box assets and the planned payout of more than $10 million to Trident employees.
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January 27, 2012
Trustees Fight Stay Extension On Tribune Clawback Suit
A Deutsche Bank AG unit and two other trustees urged a Delaware bankruptcy judge Friday against extending a stay in the Tribune Co. bankruptcy that covers a $28.7 million clawback suit against ex-Tribune CEO Dennis J. FitzSimons that is bound for federal court.
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January 27, 2012
Syms, Filene's Creditors Can't Disband Equity Committee
A Delaware bankruptcy judge on Thursday refused to disband the committee representing equity holders in the Syms Corp. and Filene's Basement LLC bankruptcy despite requests by unsecured creditors who said the group was unnecessary because managers and directors own so much Syms stock.
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January 27, 2012
US Trustee Balks, But AMR Holds On To $4.1B
A New York bankruptcy judge on Friday allowed American Airlines Inc. parent AMR Corp. to keep the vast majority of its $4.1 billion in cash in alternative investment accounts that the U.S. Trustee's office said were not properly protected under the bankruptcy code.
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January 27, 2012
Linklaters, SNR Denton Join Petroplus Bankruptcy
Linklaters LLP and SNR Denton have been brought on board by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP to assist with Swiss oil refiner Petroplus Holdings AG's bankruptcy, the firms said Friday.
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January 26, 2012
Graceway's Ch. 11 Plan Hinges On Asset Sale
Graceway Pharmaceuticals LLC filed a Chapter 11 plan Wednesday in Delaware bankruptcy court that calls for the liquidation of substantially all its remaining assets and the resolution of all claims against the company.
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January 26, 2012
Lloyd's, LandAmerica Strike $38M Deal In E&O Coverage Row
The trustee liquidating a LandAmerica Financial Group Inc. subsidiary asked a Virginia bankruptcy court on Thursday to approve a nearly $38 million settlement with Lloyd's of London underwriters over errors and omissions insurance policy claims.
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January 26, 2012
Judge Cuts Lehman Unit Down To Size Over $16B Claim
A New York bankruptcy judge on Thursday slashed the amount of money that Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. will have to set aside to cover a disputed $15.4 billion claim by its Swiss unit, while chastising the unit over its unwillingness to cooperate.
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January 26, 2012
Petroplus Disputes Bankruptcy Fraud Allegations
Swiss oil refiner Petroplus Holdings AG on Thursday denied fraud concerns raised by French prosecutors related to the company's recently announced plans to declare bankruptcy.
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January 26, 2012
Retirement Fund, Alberta To Head Corzine Class Actions
The New York federal judge overseeing 12 class actions against ex-MF Global Holdings Ltd. CEO Jon Corzine over his role in the company's collapse put a retirement fund and Alberta, Canada — the largest victims — at the helm last week.
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January 26, 2012
Judge Taps Trustee For Clean Burn Ch. 11
A North Carolina bankruptcy judge on Wednesday appointed a Chapter 11 trustee for failed ethanol maker Clean Burn Fuels LLC following Perdue BioEnergy LLC's defeated bid to convert the proceedings into a Chapter 7 liquidation.
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January 26, 2012
Battery Maker Ener1 To Recharge With Prepackaged Ch. 11
Citing a stalled electric car market and increasing competition from Asian rivals, lithium battery maker Ener1 Inc. on Thursday filed for a prepackaged Chapter 11 that will see the company get an $81 million equity boost from its secured creditors.
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January 25, 2012
American Laser's Auction Plan Draws Creditor Objection
The official committee of unsecured creditors for hair removal chain American Laser Centers LLC objected Wednesday to a plan for the company to auction its assets, saying that a unit of private equity lender Versa Capital Management LLC had failed to provide an adequate wind-down budget.
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January 25, 2012
Music Startup Beyond Oblivion Files For Bankruptcy
Beyond Oblivion Inc., a digital music startup backed by media mogul Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., filed for Chapter 11 protection in New York bankruptcy court on Tuesday.
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January 25, 2012
US Futures Firms Properly Separated Customer Funds: CFTC
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission has found that all 70 of the U.S. futures trading firms it reviewed after the collapse of bankrupt brokerage MF Global Inc. had kept their customers’ funds separate from their own, the agency said Wednesday.
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January 25, 2012
US Airways Hires Latham To Explore Possible AMR Merger
US Airways Group Inc. has tapped Latham & Watkins LLP and other advisers to help study merger possibilities related to American Airlines Inc.'s bankrupt parent company AMR Corp., the carrier confirmed Wednesday.
Expert Analysis
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Case Study: In Re XMH Corp.
The Seventh Circuit ruling in In re XMH Corp. is consistent with several bankruptcy court opinions following the "universal rule" that a trademark license cannot be assigned without the licensor's express consent. The decision is notable, however, as it is the first published opinion on the circuit level regarding the issue, says Joseph Tiller of Jones Day.
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Case Study: ZING VII
Although several questions impacting distressed collateralized debt obligations were left unanswered, the case of Zais Investment Grade Limited VII demonstrates that, under certain circumstances, CDO noteholders may be able to use the bankruptcy process to accelerate the liquidation of underperforming CDOs, say attorneys with Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP.
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'Extend And Pretend' Meets The Great Deleveraging
The failure of companies to deleverage the excesses of the bubble years appears to be at least partially attributable to the fact that some lenders, already burdened with defaulted loans, have been reluctant to declare further defaults unless the situation is dire. Instead, lenders have been amending loan documents to waive defaults and extend maturities, says Nicholas Kajon of Steven & Lee PC.
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European Restructuring Strategies: Chasing Ch. 11
The key consideration for a foreign company in need of restructuring is not simply whether it may commence a Chapter 11 proceeding in the United States, but whether it successfully can enforce U.S. bankruptcy court orders against foreign creditors abroad, say Van Durrer and Chris Mallon of Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP.
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Case Study: Jefferson County
Bankruptcy Judge Thomas Bennett began the New Year with a bang — issuing a 57-page decision in the Chapter 9 case of Jefferson County, Ala. This ruling may prove to be one of the most important decisions of the year in one of the hottest anticipated areas of bankruptcy law: distressed municipalities, says Robert Richards, Sam Alberts and Thomas Vandiver of SNR Denton.
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'Superior' Strength — How To Bend Barred Claims
The Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas recently recognized in In re Superior Offshore International Inc. that a claim discharged against the debtor may still be pursued nominally against the debtor to seek recovery from a nondebtor source. In addition to insurance policies, this decision could be applied to similar contexts involving guarantors, say Adam Rogoff and Anita Wong of Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP.
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Domain Name Collateral And Trademark Tangles
The Ninth Circuit decisions in GoPets Ltd. v. Hise and Office Depot Inc. v. Zuccarini have made it easier for creditors to confidently access and auction domain names as security for loans or to satisfy judgments. However, there are trademark and administrative obstacles that continue to hinder a creditor’s clean monetization of the value in domain names, says Gavin George of Haynes and Boone LLP.
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Deconstructing WaMu
The recent rejection of Washington Mutual Inc.'s plan of reorganization by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court illustrates that ad hoc committee participation creates enhanced risk of insider trading claims for creditors that engage in active trading. Deconstructing the opinion yields constructive guidance for ad hoc committee members determined to avoid the type of attention paid to their counterparts in WaMu, say attorneys with Richards Kibbe & Orbe LLP.
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Key Provisions In Account Control Agreements
Satisfactory cash-management structure of the debtor is one of the most important aspects of a secured lending transaction. A prudent secured lender should consider four items which, in our experience, represent the most common negotiation points in deposit account control agreements, say Jason Beckham and Dwight Mixson of Burr & Forman LLP.
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Sanchez V. Northwest — A Dangerous Exception
The Eighth Circuit decision in Sanchez v. Northwest Airlines Inc. should serve as a reminder to be cautious when including exceptions as to which creditors must assert requests for payment prior to an administrative bar date. For with such an exception comes the risk that what is included in that exception may be an administrative claim the debtor never contemplated, say Catherine Fenoglio and John Weiss of Alston & Bird LLP.