Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Filings – 770 As of March, 2018 – Highest in 7 Years

*** UPDATE *** (See prior article on this blog – “Chapters in Bankruptcy, a Short Primer…”) The number of Chapter 11 (“reorganization” bankruptcy) filings has reached an all-time high since 2011. In that year, there were 789 Chapter 11 filings as the nation was still trying to recover from the “great recession” of 2008 – 2009. According to data from the American Bankruptcy Institute (“ABI”), the year-over-jump (that tracks the number of such filings in comparison to previous reporting periods) was the second highest to be Read More +

Dodd-frank: Title Xiv – Mortgage Reform and Anti-predatory Lending Act

Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act, amendment to the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), was brought about as a reaction to the lending practices that had lead to the burst of the real estate bubble in 2008. Many mortgages prior to the burst of the real estate bubble included clauses that were unfavorable to those who had borrowed the money. Some such clauses made it impossible to pay off mortgages where the value of the property dropped below the amount of the loan. Mortgage Reform Read More +

Gibson Brands, Inc. Dba Gibson Guitars Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Protection

*** UPDATE TO PREVIOUS ARTICLE *** Ending months of speculation concerning the future of the once iconic guitar manufacturing company, Gibson Brands, Inc., the parent of Gibson Guitars, filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection earlier this week. The Nashville, TN-based company is said to have in excess of $100 million in outstanding debt (some reports say that such figure is at least five times greater than the reported amount). In a statement released by the company on Tuesday, CEO Henry Juszkiewicz said, “We are working Read More +

Connecticut – A Legacy of Debt and the Possibility of Chapter 9 Bankruptcy

The State of Connecticut ended the 2017 fiscal year on a note of financial doom. As of the end of December, 2017, the state had the most underfunded pension system in the nation with over $127 billion in government-worker pension liabilities and no viable plan to institute needed reforms. Public-Worker Pensions – The BIG Problem: Pension woes are not the state’s only problem that threatens the economy, but they are the worst. The problem is huge, made up of the following critical components: pensions for Read More +

Chapter 9 Bankruptcy – Santa Cruz, Ca & Calpers Pension Crises

The City of Santa Cruz, CA is one of the latest municipalities to fall into what some have called a “…disturbing trend that will end in a full-fledged pension crisis” across the breadth and width of the nation. Santa Cruz is a California coastal community of 65,000 residents situated some 75 miles southwest of San Francisco. The small city, home to the University of California at Santa Cruz, is heavily dependent upon year-round tourist trade and not much else in the way of economic support. Read More +

Public Sector Pension Plans: A “ticking Time Bomb”

According to a December, 2017, washingtonfreebeacon.com report “…unfunded liabilities of state public pension funds increased by $433 billion over the past year and presently exceed $6 trillion…”. The report continues, “Unfunded liabilities of public pension plans continue to loom over state governments nationwide. Absent significant reforms, unfunded liabilities of state-administered pension plans will continue to grow and threaten the financial security of state retirees and taxpayers alike.” Astonishingly, the $6 trillion in unfunded liabilities average approximately $18,676.00 for every person in the United States. Alaska has Read More +

Winn-dixie to Close 94 Stores – Parent Company to File for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

Florida-based Southeastern Grocers – the parent company of the Winn-Dixie grocery chain – announced yesterday that it will file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy by the end of March. Southeastern said it is “…implementing a court-supervised, pre-packaged” debt restructuring agreement after “conducting a thorough review of options for reducing our current debt”. The company expects to reduce current outstanding debt by approximately $500 million. In addition to Winn-Dixie, Southeastern Grocers also operates stores under the brand identities of BI-LO, Fresca y Mas and Harvey Supermarket with Read More +

the Weinstein Company Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy After 5-month Delay

****** MARCH 20218 UPDATE ****** BREAKING NEWS THE WEINSTEIN COMPANY FILES FOR CHAPTER 11 BANKRUPTCY AFTER 5-MONTH DELAY The Weinstein Company – founded by embattled movie mogul Harvey Weinstein and his brother Bob Weinstein in 2005 – has officially filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in a Delaware bankruptcy court. Media reports indicate that the filing occurred late in the day on Monday, March 19th. Former company Chairman Harvey Weinstein has been under fire for serial assault, sexual harassment and rape that allegedly occurred over the Read More +

Harvey Weinstein / the Weinstein Company – Chapter 11 Bankruptcy in the Offing As Sale Talks Fail

“Born under a bad sign, been down since I began to crawl if it wasn’t for bad luck, I wouldn’t have no luck at all…” (“Born Under a Bad Sign” -Original Version, Albert King, 1967; covered by Cream, 1968) Today, Albert King’s song might seem like the “anthem” of (former) movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, and, by extension, his former corporation The Weinstein Company LLC (more universally referred to, and known more simply as TWC). According to online news / gossip source TMZ.com, The Weinstein Company Read More +

Hcr Manorcare, Inc. – $7 Billion in Debt – Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

HCR Manorcare, Inc., the second largest nursing home operator in the United States, has filed a voluntary petition for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy. The Toledo, Ohio-based company has $7 billion in debt.. Informed sources say the Chapter 11 petition is part of a pre-arranged debt-for-equity swap deal whereby ownership of the HCR will be transferred to its landlord, Quality Care Properties, Inc. (“QCP”). According to the QCP website, the company is “…a self-managed and self-administered real estate investment trust (REIT)… focused on post-acute/skilled nursing and memory Read More +