A dispute between the bankrupt shell company left behind after Edward Lampert’s purchase of Sears Holdings Corp.’s top stores and a number of foreign vendors is heating up, the Wall Street Journal reported. The suppliers filed court papers last week seeking to compel payment for merchandise purchased during or just before bankruptcy and objecting to the disclosure statement, which lays out the Sears bankruptcy estate’s reorganization plan. Apex Tool Group LLC, the maker of Craftsman-branded tools; Winners Industry Co., a China-based maker of custom Christmas trees; and Gokaldas Exports Ltd. and Pearl Global Industries Ltd., both Indian apparel makers; are looking to force Sears to pay them for goods delivered after Sears entered bankruptcy or within 20 days before filing for court protection. All four suppliers argue that their claims for payment should be treated as administrative expenses, which have top priority in a bankruptcy because of the timing of the deliveries, according to court filings. The dispute has been brewing since last year and is coming to a head as the Sears bankruptcy estate attempts to wind up its affairs and get the bankruptcy court to approve a plan of reorganization that will pay out creditors, lawyers and other advisers before closing the case. Read more. (Subscription required.)
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