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JPMorgan Chase executives discussed downgrading their internal credit rating for Tribune Co. just hours after the media company completed a leveraged buyout the bank helped finance.
E-mails presented in federal court in Wilmington, Del., Wednesday show an executive for the bank thought a downgrade was required after the buyout. Get the full story »
Dynegy Inc. warned it could seek bankruptcy protection if it cannot amend or replace its existing loan facility, the latest twist in the power company’s bumpy effort to restructure itself.
Investors seemed to mostly shrug off the warning, made in a regulatory filing, as the company’s shares fell 1.7 percent. Get the full story »
WILMINGTON, Del. — Confirmation hearings in Tribune Co.’s bankruptcy case got under way Tuesday with a full day of testimony about the company’s tortured on-again-off-again effort to forge a settlement among its warring creditors.
Investment banker David Kurtz of Lazard Ltd., who spearheaded negotiations on behalf of Chicago-based Tribune Co. for two years, described a “painful and difficult” process paralyzed by the obstructionist behavior among the creditors.
He said efforts to broker a deal among creditors sparring over legal claims related to Tribune Co.’s 2007 leverage buyout were repeatedly undone by the aggressive tactics of hedge funds on all sides of the case who bought the company’s distressed debt hoping to profit from a restructuring. Get the full story »
WILMINGTON, Del. – The warring creditors in Tribune Co.’s bankruptcy case provided few surprises Monday as they fired their opening shots in litigation aimed at resolving a case that one lawyer said had come to resemble “water torture.” Get the full story »
A Giordano's at 1040 W. Belmont. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
Giordano’s, the Chicago-based pizza chain that filed for bankruptcy last month, has hired the restructuring firm headed by Democratic party stalwart William Brandt.
On Wednesday, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Eugene Wedoff will be asked to approve an agreement between Giordano’s Enterprises Inc. and Chicago-based Development Specialists Inc. (DSI)
Giordano’s and 32 affiliated companies filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Feb. 17. Get the full story »
After 27 months of legal wrangling, Tribune Co. and its creditors are finally headed into what could be the deciding chapter of the company’s tangled bankruptcy saga.
The case will enter what bankruptcy law practitioners call confirmation hearings Monday, and for the next two weeks U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Carey in Delaware will hear evidence from an army of lawyers arguing for and against two competing visions of how to restructure the Chicago-based media conglomerate.
A U.S. Federal court judge on Thursday said he would approve the bankruptcy plan for “Old GM”, paving the way for General Motors to begin distributing stock and warrants to some unsecured creditors, a spokesman said. Get the full story »
The new chief executive of General Growth Properties Inc. said the company plans to sell some malls, cut debt and expenses and raise occupancy rates and some rents to boost income and put its bankruptcy behind it.
Sandeep Mathrani, who has been the CEO of the No. 2 U.S. mall owner for about 40 days, said Tuesday that he expects to reduce the number of malls the company owns to 150 from 169. It plans to sell the 19 other malls, which contribute a minimal amount to its income. The company had more than 200 malls before it filed for bankruptcy in April 2009. Get the full story »
Home video chain Blockbuster Inc., in bankruptcy, has opted to put itself up for sale after creditors were unable to agree on a recapitalization plan.
The Dallas-based company said Monday that it has submitted a plan for an auction process to U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New York. A holding company formed by four if its largest creditors — Monarch Alternative Capital, Owl Creek Asset Management, Stonehill Capital Management and Varde Partners — has submitted an opening “stalking horse” bid of $290 million. Get the full story »
Former Bears player Dave Duerson in 2007. (David Trotman-Wilkins/Chicago Tribune)
Former Chicago Bears safety Dave Duerson, who committed suicide last Thursday in Sunny Isles Beach, Fla., had filed for voluntary personal bankruptcy last September in a case that was still pending.
But his Fort Lauderdale lawyer said he was “shocked” when he learned that his client had shot himself. Get the full story »
A Giordano's at 1040 W. Belmont on Feb. 18, 2011. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
By Alejandra Cancino and Becky Yerak | It wasn’t the pizza, it was the real estate.
That’s what attorney Michael Gesas, who represents the Apostolou family businesses, said Friday while explaining the reasons prominent Chicago pizza chain Giordano’s filed for bankruptcy reorganization on Wednesday. The Apostolou family owns Giordano’s.
Giordano’s filing was prompted, Gesas said, when the Apostolou family defaulted on loans on their real estate business, Randolph Partners LLC. Get the full story »
(Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images)
Borders will begin holding closing sales this Saturday at 200 of its stores, including 15 locations in the Chicago area.
A U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New York gave Borders the go-ahead on Thursday to shutter roughly 30 percent of its stores. The Ann Arbor, Mich.-based bookseller filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Wednesday.
The company said in a press release that more than $350 million in books, magazines, music, movies, calendars and other merchandise will be liquidated at discounts ranging from 20 percent to 40 percent. Borders Rewards programs remain in effect in stores and online, and the retailer is also honoring gift cards. Get the full story »
From the Chicago Sun-Times | The Aurora restaurant that once carried Walter Payton’s name has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after months of unpaid bills and delinquent taxes that have kept its owners in and out of the courtroom. Owner Scott Ascher said he filed for bankruptcy protection for the facility Monday in order to sell the building to one of three interested parties. Ascher said the restaurant will remain open. Get the full story>>
Chicago’s Giordano’s Enterprises Inc., home of the “world famous” deep-dish pizza, filed for bankruptcy Wednesday.
According to documents served up Wednesday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Chicago, Giordano’s sought Chapter 11 protection along with 32 affiliates. In court papers, Giordano’s said it has “an urgent and immediate need for cash to continue to operate.”
Giordano’s, where every pizza “is a slice of heaven,” owes more than $45 million to lender Fifth Third Bank. Get the full story »
Blockbuster’s landlords want to evict the bankrupt movie rental chain from dozens of stores if they are not immediately paid past-due rent, adding to the company’s woes in Chapter 11.
Blockbuster is already facing demands from the film studio behind the hit “Twilight” vampire series that it pay its bills or liquidate. Get the full story »
