Mid Cap
-
November 15, 2024
PetroQuest Gets Interim OK To Tap $847K In Del. Ch. 11
A Delaware bankruptcy judge Friday granted interim permission for oil and gas company PetroQuest Energy Inc. to access $847,500 of new money financing from its lenders as it plans to sell its assets in East Texas.
-
November 15, 2024
Under The Radar: Bankruptcy News You May Have Missed
A New York bankruptcy judge denied retail creditors to Celsius Network discovery into the crypto lender's bankruptcy plan administration, Johnson & Johnson's talc unit bit back at efforts to dismiss its Chapter 11 case, and the Archdiocese of New Orleans established non-monetary child protections with its unsecured creditors. Here are some bankruptcy stories that may have slipped past you this week.
-
November 15, 2024
Colo. Judge Nixes Debtor's Transfer Try For Not Conferring
A Colorado federal judge on Friday struck a motion to transfer a putative class action suit against a bankrupt truck rental company to the Delaware court handling the business's Chapter 11 case, saying the company had failed to consult with the plaintiffs before filing the motion.
-
November 15, 2024
Meet The Attys Guiding Alex Jones Through Chapter 7
As right-wing media fabulist Alex Jones awaits the final outcome of an auction for his InfoWars website, he's being led through Chapter 7 by a team of attorneys from Elliott Thomason & Gibson LLP and Jordan & Ortiz PC.
-
November 15, 2024
Property Plays: Franchise Group, Kushner, Astrodome
Property Plays is a weekly roundup of the latest loans, leases, sales and projects around the country. Send your tips — all confidential — to realestate@law360.com.
-
November 15, 2024
Girardi Seeks Sentencing Delay Amid Atty's Departure
Disbarred attorney Tom Girardi is asking a California federal judge for more time before his sentencing date because a key member of his legal team is leaving the Federal Public Defender's Office on Monday.
-
November 15, 2024
Ex-McElroy Deutsch Exec Says Firm Has No Claim On House
The former McElroy Deutsch Mulvaney & Carpenter LLP business development director whose husband pled guilty to stealing millions from the firm has argued that the time has come for the court to toss an attempt by the firm to put her house in a constructive trust.
-
November 15, 2024
UAE Defense Contractor Facing Questions On Quitting Ch. 11
A Delaware bankruptcy judge on Friday said she would allow a competitor and arbitration award claimant of an Abu Dhabi-based defense contractor limited discovery into the company's decision not to fight the dismissal of its Chapter 11 case.
-
November 15, 2024
Eletson To Appeal Order Confirming Rival Ch. 11 Plan
Gas tanker operator Eletson Holdings Inc. has opened an appeal of a New York bankruptcy judge's confirmation of a Chapter 11 plan proposed by petitioning creditors, according to a notice of the move.
-
November 15, 2024
Sterilization Co. Cosmed Hits Ch. 11 Amid Cancer Claims
Sterilization company Cosmed Group Inc. filed for Chapter 11 protection in a Texas bankruptcy court Thursday with over $100 million in liabilities, much of it related to cancer claims over the gas that it uses for sterilization.
-
November 15, 2024
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London
This past week in London has seen Ocado file an intellectual property claim against an African fruit and vegetable importer, a claim filed against a Swiss bank founded by Indian billionaire Srichand Parmanand Hinduja and 300 individuals sue travel company TUI. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.
-
November 15, 2024
Ex-Freshfields Partner Suspended Over Inappropriate Conduct
A former partner with Freshfields will face a two-year suspension and a costs bill of £66,000 ($83,500), the profession's disciplinary tribunal has ruled after finding that he had engaged in "inappropriate and unwanted conduct" while employed at the firm.
-
November 14, 2024
Inflation, Election Anxiety Drove Bankruptcy Hike, Experts Say
Bankruptcy filings for both businesses and consumers have risen by 16% over the past year, with factors such as inflation, residual impacts of high interest rates, the COVID-19 pandemic, and macroeconomic uncertainties in the run-up to a contentious presidential election as key drivers, restructuring experts told Law360.
-
November 14, 2024
Giuliani Attys Signal Impasse In Bid To Exit Collection Cases
Attorneys representing disgraced ex-lawyer Rudy Giuliani asked a New York federal court to allow them to withdraw from representing him in a pair of cases from former Georgia poll workers seeking to collect a $148 million defamation award against him, indicating they are at odds with the onetime New York City mayor.
-
November 14, 2024
Louisiana Oil Field Co. Hits Ch. 11 Again With $115M Debt
PetroQuest Energy Inc., an oil and gas exploration company, filed for bankruptcy in Delaware reporting $115.5 million in debt with plans to sell its Texas operations five years after it exited Chapter 11 in 2019.
-
November 14, 2024
The Onion Buys Alex Jones' Infowars At Ch. 7 Auction
Satirical news website The Onion has purchased Alex Jones' Infowars at a Chapter 7 bankruptcy auction, according to a Thursday announcement by the firm representing Sandy Hook shooting survivors who won a $1.4 billion defamation award over his claims the massacre was a hoax.
-
November 13, 2024
Q&A With FTX Lead Ch. 11 Atty Andy Dietderich — Part II
Sullivan & Cromwell LLP's Andy Dietderich led the legal team that represented FTX Trading Ltd. in its two-year-long, $14 billion-plus Chapter 11 case — from shortly before the company's bankruptcy filing in Delaware to its recent successful confirmation hearing.
-
November 13, 2024
Judge To Confirm Ambri Ch. 11 Wind-Down Plan
A Delaware bankruptcy judge Wednesday agreed to approve the Chapter 11 plan of battery company Ambri Inc., which will sell its assets to its lenders and wind down.
-
November 13, 2024
Sticky's Chicken Gets OK For 3-Year Ch. 11 Plan
A Delaware bankruptcy judge Wednesday confirmed the Chapter 11 plan of popular New York-area chicken restaurant chain Sticky's that includes a $300,000 equity infusion from existing investors.
-
November 13, 2024
Catching Up With New Bankruptcy Case Action
Former used-car retailer Vroom, prison healthcare provider Wellpath and film production services company Film Finances have all filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, citing economic difficulties in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
-
November 13, 2024
Blink Fitness Gets OK For $121M Sale To PureGym
A Delaware bankruptcy judge has approved Blink Fitness' $121 million sale of its assets to U.K.-based PureGym Ltd., whose subsidiary won an auction held late last month, overruling objections over the auction's fairness as unfounded.
-
November 13, 2024
Instant Brands Equity Owner Accused Of Lying To Lenders
The litigation trustee for bankrupt kitchenware maker Instant Brands Wednesday filed suit in Texas bankruptcy court accusing the company's equity owner of lying to lenders and sending the company into Chapter 11 in order to collect $200 million in dividends.
-
November 13, 2024
Gritstone Bio Can Tap $25M New DIP As It Works Toward Sale
Vaccine developer Gritstone bio Inc. won a Delaware bankruptcy judge's approval Wednesday to borrow $25 million in new financing to support itself in Chapter 11 as the biotechnology company works to find a buyer.
-
November 13, 2024
Jackson Walker Must Supply Docs In Judge-Atty Affair Probe
The Texas federal court overseeing a U.S. Trustee's Office probe of a former Jackson Walker LLP partner's undisclosed relationship with a then-bankruptcy judge has given the firm until Friday to turn over its communications with public relations firms and pages from its attorney sourcebook.
-
November 13, 2024
Goulston & Storrs Real Estate Attys Talk Distress Playbook
As commercial real estate distress continues to play out, attorneys are seeing lenders adopt new strategies to save or reduce their exposure to troubled assets, sometimes working in tandem with investors looking to purchase such loans.
Expert Analysis
-
Asserting 'Presence-Of-Counsel' Defense In Securities Trials
As illustrated by the fraud trial of FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, defense attorneys in securities trials might consider arguing that counsel had some involvement in the conduct at issue — if the more formal advice-of-counsel defense is unavailable and circumstances allow for a privilege waiver, say Joseph Dever and Matthew Elkin at Cozen O'Connor.
-
Crypto Has Democratized Trading In Bankruptcy Claims
Following the pandemic, there has been a wave of cryptocurrency bankruptcies and a related increase in access to information, allowing nontraditional bankruptcy investors to purchase claims and democratizing a once closed segment of alternative investing, says Joseph Sarachek at Strategic Liquidity.
-
The Case For Post-Bar Clerk Training Programs At Law Firms
In today's competitive legal hiring market, an intentionally designed training program for law school graduates awaiting bar admission can be an effective way of creating a pipeline of qualified candidates, says Brent Daub at Gilson Daub.
-
5 Key Tips For Attorneys In The Subchapter V Arena
Subchapter V cases present unique challenges for the nondebtor parties-in-interest, and habits developed by attorneys in typical Chapter 11 cases do not necessarily translate, meaning creditors and their counsel should quickly take a proactive role in their cases to protect their interests, which can be done by attending the 341 meeting, analyzing the plan, and more, says Kelly Singer at Squire Patton.
-
Attorneys Have An Ethical Duty To Protect The Judiciary
The tenor of public disagreement and debate has become increasingly hostile against judges, and though the legislative branch is trying to ameliorate this safety gap, lawyers have a moral imperative and professional requirement to stand with judges in defusing attacks against them and their rulings, says Deborah Winokur at Cozen O'Connor.
-
Why The Debt Maturity Wall Is Still A Figment, For Now
While the phenomenon of the debt maturity wall — a growing wall of staggered corporate debt maturities — has been considered a looming problem since the aftermath of the 2008 global financial crisis, it’s unlikely to have significant consequences before 2025 due to factors such as quantitative easing and evolved lending practices, says Michael Eisenband at FTI Consulting.
-
AI Can Help Lawyers Overcome The Programming Barrier
Legal professionals without programming expertise can use generative artificial intelligence to harness the power of automation and other technology solutions to streamline their work, without the steep learning curve traditionally associated with coding, says George Zalepa at Greenberg Traurig.
-
10 Essential Bankruptcy Litigation Tips For In-House Counsel
Bankruptcy litigation is a complex and multifaceted area of law that poses unique challenges for in-house counsel, and there are several tools at legal professionals' disposal, like appraisals and understanding jurisdictions, to stay well-informed and protect their companies' interests, says Alison Ashmore at Dykema.
-
Preparing Law Students For A New, AI-Assisted Legal World
As artificial intelligence rapidly transforms the legal landscape, law schools must integrate technology and curricula that address AI’s innate challenges — from ethics to data security — to help students stay ahead of the curve, say Daniel Garrie at Law & Forensics, Ryan Abbott at JAMS and Karen Silverman at Cantellus Group.
-
Sellers Seeking Best Deal Should Focus On Terms And Price
Rising interest rates and a decline in the automotive mergers and acquisitions market mean that a failed deal carries greater stakes, and sellers therefore should pursue not only the optimum price but also the optimum terms to safeguard their agreement, says Joseph Aboyoun at Fox Rothschild.
-
General Counsel Need Data Literacy To Keep Up With AI
With the rise of accessible and powerful generative artificial intelligence solutions, it is imperative for general counsel to understand the use and application of data for myriad important activities, from evaluating the e-discovery process to monitoring compliance analytics and more, says Colin Levy at Malbek.
-
Rite Aid's Reasons For Ch. 11 Go Beyond Opioid Suits
Despite opioid-related lawsuits being the perceived reason that pushed Rite Aid into bankruptcy, the company's recent Chapter 11 filing reveals its tenuous position in the pharmaceutical retail market, and only time will tell whether bankruptcy will right-size the company, says Daniel Gielchinsky at DGIM Law.
-
Navigating Discovery Of Generative AI Information
As generative artificial intelligence tools become increasingly ubiquitous, companies must make sure to preserve generative AI data when there is reasonable expectation of litigation, and to include transcripts in litigation hold notices, as they may be relevant to discovery requests, say Nick Peterson and Corey Hauser at Wiley.