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September 20,
2006
w:st='on'>
name='1'>New York
face='Times New Roman' size='3'> Ruling Affirms BAPCPA’s
“Disposable Income” Provisions for Chapter 13
Debtors
Chief Bankruptcy Judge
size='3'>Stephen D. Gerling’s ruling in In re Rotunda, 06-60054, affirmed
BAPCPA’s standards for chapter 13 debtors that permit allowances
for food, housing, rent and other necessities, based on state median
values, the New York Law
Journal reported today. While the standards are said to
be unrealistically low for debtors in some parts of the country, they
are seen as unrealistically high in other regions, such as economically
hard-pressed upstate
York
median. Gerling's court is one of several across the nation where
attorneys have been debating whether the term 'projected disposable
income' under 11 U.S.C. §1325(b)(1)(B) has meaning distinct from
the term 'disposable income' as defined in 11 U.S.C. §1325(b)(2).
Their decisions are split, with the bulk of them distinguishing between
'projected disposable' and 'disposable' to the benefit of
creditors.
href='http://www.law.com/jsp/ihc/PubArticleIHC.jsp?id=1158682105554'>Read
more .
SGI
Set to Exit Bankruptcy Protection
A bankruptcy judge
accepted computer maker Silicon Graphics Inc.'s reorganization plan
Tuesday, setting the stage for the company to emerge from chapter 11 in
October, ZDNet.com reported yesterday. SGI chief executive Dennis
McKenna said the company will be smaller with a staff of 1,600 and
annual expenses not exceeding $150 million.
size='3'>SGI plans to continue selling products for
engineering, scientific and research tasks.
face='Times New Roman'>As part of the plan, SGI said it
that has obtained exit financing of $85
million from Morgan Stanley provided an $85 million loan and a $30
million line of credit from General Electric Capital.
href='http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9595_22-6117330.html'>Read
more.
name='3'>Comair Threatens to Impose New Contract Terms on
Attendants
Comair is set
to hold negotiations Thursday with its flight attendants union for
the first time in a month, signaling that the airline might impose new
contract terms if the union continues to holdout, the
face='Times New Roman' size='3'>Cincinnati Enquirer
size='3'>reported today. Comair was authorized in July by a bankruptcy
judge to impose a new contract on its flight attendants union. The union
has said it would strike or engage in some other work action if the
company imposed terms, which would cut $7.9 million in costs. The
company has until Oct. 2 to submit a bid to corporate parent Delta Air
Lines to maintain control of certain routes it currently provides for
Delta.
href='http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060920/BIZ01/6092…'>Read
more.
name='4'>Virginia Furniture Maker Files for Chapter
11
Upholstered furniture maker
Rowe Companies said that it filed for chapter 11 in the Eastern District
of Virginia, the Associated Press reported yesterday. The filing, along
with filings by its two operating units, Rowe Furniture Inc. and
Atlanta-based furniture retailer Storehouse Inc., will allow Rowe to
complete its ongoing restructuring plans and initiatives, including the
sale of Storehouse.
href='http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/fn/4197762.html'>Read
more.
name='5'>Mississippi Casino Company Files for
Bankruptcy
Premier Entertainment
Biloxi LLC , the parent company of Hard Rock Biloxi, filed for
bankruptcy yesterday, trying to shake loose its insurance
settlements from bondholders, the
size='3'>Biloxi (Miss.) Sun Herald reported
today. The casino company has already sued the trustee bank for its
bondholders and has offered to buy back the debt. The casino, which was
slated to open the week Hurricane Katrina struck, has collected $160
million in insurance, but bondholders have refused to release the money.
The casino company said the bankruptcy filing will help it gain access
to the money and stay on schedule to open next summer.
href='http://www.sunherald.com/mld/sunherald/news/local/15560879.htm'>Read
more.
w:st='on'>
name='6'>Iowa
size='3'> Diocese Considers Bankruptcy after Abuse
Ruling
The Roman Catholic
Diocese of Davenport, Iowa, is considering its options, including an
appeal as well as a possible bankruptcy filing, after a jury awarded
a
size='3'>Davenport
damages, the
size='3'>Des Moines
size='3'>(
face='Times New Roman' size='3'>Iowa
size='3'>) Register reported today. In a
verdict handed down on Monday, jurors found the diocese negligent of
sexual abuse claims and awarded $1,536,800 to the victim. Following the
verdict, the diocese issued a statement that disclosed that it has
limited insurance to pay the judgment and that bankruptcy must be
considered.
href='http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060920/LI…'>Read
more.
name='7'>Chrysler to Cut Production
Chrysler announced
yesterday that it would cut its production schedule for the rest of the
year by 16 percent because of slumping sales as a result of high gas
prices, the New York
Times reported today. The announcement comes
on the heels of similar cuts at GM and Ford, which are both trying to
restructure after billions of dollars in losses in the last
year. Chrysler,
which lately has ranked fourth behind GM, Ford and Toyota Motor in
American sales, reiterated that it expected a $1.26 billion loss this
year, although it had planned to break even. As a result, Chrysler
said it would embark on what was likely to be its second major revamping
since 2000, and acknowledged that its market share could shrink further,
potentially dropping it to fifth place in the United States behind
Honda.
href='http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/20/automobiles/20chrysler.html?_r=1&oref…'>Read
more.
face='Times New Roman' size='3'>
name='8'>Holiday
Decline
The National Retail
Federation (NRF) predicted yesterday that holiday sales growth will lag
behind last year's in an early forecast that set a tepid tone for the
most important shopping season of the year, the
face='Times New Roman' size='3'>Washington Post
size='3'>reported today. NRF estimated that sales during November and
December will grow 5 percent to $457.4 billion, compared with a 6.1
percent increase last year. Average growth over the past 10
years has been 4.6 percent, the group said. C. Britt Beemer,
chairman of
w:st='on'>
size='3'>America
size='3'>'s Research Group Ltd., a consumer-behavior research firm, said
he thought the NRF's forecast was too optimistic and estimated growth of
roughly 3 percent. The holiday shopping season typically acounts
for about 20 percent of total retail sales, making it a make-or-break
period for many companies.
href='http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/18/AR20060…'>Read
more.
International
name='9'>Yukos Loses Its Bankruptcy Appeal
A
w:st='on'>
size='3'>Moscow
court has thrown out an appeal by Russian oil firm Yukos against it
being declared bankrupt, BBC.com reported yesterday. Yukos was
challenging a decision made last month that cleared the way for the firm
to be liquidated. Yukos' principal shareholders filed for bankruptcy,
rejecting assurances from management that it could remain in business
and pay the $17 billion it owes to creditors.
href='http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/5359940.stm'>Read
more.
href='http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/5359940.stm'>