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Department store chain Belk Inc. won bankruptcy-court approval to cut $450 million in debt, emerging from a prepackaged chapter 11 case less than 24 hours after it was filed, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. After filing for chapter 11 protection on Tuesday, Belk won approval for its restructuring plan yesterday from Judge Marvin Isgur in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Houston. Belk’s sprint through chapter 11 was one of just a handful of cases that were completed in under 24 hours. Kirkland & Ellis LLP, the law firm representing Belk in the bankruptcy case, said the pre-packaged restructuring was completed in less than 21 hours, faster than other recent Kirkland cases that were quickly turned around, including catalog retailer Fullbeauty Brands Inc. and Sungard Availability Services LP, an information-technology services provider. Superfast bankruptcies like Belk’s are rare. Only a handful of companies have been able to go in and out of bankruptcy in a 24- or 48-hour time frame, including Fullbeauty, which set the previous record in 2019 for the least time between the filing of a chapter 11 petition and confirmation of an exit plan. Charlotte, N.C.-based Belk, however, is using bankruptcy solely to restructure its debt while paying vendors in full and assuming the leases at its 291 stores, all of which are staying open, according to court papers. Judge Isgur expressed concern at Wednesday’s court hearing about whether all creditors were properly notified in advance of the planned bankruptcy and had enough time to raise objections. Justice Department bankruptcy monitors objected to Belk’s sprint through bankruptcy, saying the company was racing through the process too quickly without giving creditors and others who might have an interest in the chapter 11 case enough time to respond or object.

The National Rifle Association filed a countersuit against New York Attorney General Letitia James, saying that she lacks authority to invoke state laws governing nonprofits in her zeal to destroy the gun rights group, Reuters reported. In a Tuesday night court filing, the NRA, which filed for bankruptcy last month, accused James of “weaponizing” her powers to pursuing a “blatant and malicious retaliation campaign” against it because she dislikes what it stands for. James’ office did not immediately respond on Wednesday to requests for comment. The attorney general had sued the NRA and Chief Executive Wayne LaPierre last August, saying the nonprofit diverted millions of dollars to fund luxurious trips for officials, no-show contracts for associates, and other questionable expenses.

Casual dining chain Ruby said on Wednesday it had emerged from bankruptcy, nearly five months after it filed for chapter 11 protection as restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic halted dine-in operations, Reuters reported. The restaurant chain, known for its classic American burgers and steaks, said the bankruptcy allowed it to shed liabilities, including leases from closed locations that were impacted by the health crisis and focus on 209 company-owned locations. “Ruby Tuesday is a healthier company now and is positioned to be more efficient, competitive and stable for the future,” Chief Executive Officer Shawn Lederman said. The company said it would focus on developing “delivery-only” brands and increase its off-premise presence, as consumers still wary of contracting the virus choose to order online and have food delivered to their doorstep. The chain, founded nearly half a century ago, had struggled even before the pandemic due to increasing competition and as fewer people chose to dine at full-service restaurants.

A lawyer for Frontera Holdings LLC, the owner of a natural gas plant near the U.S.-Mexico border, told a judge on Tuesday that it could face fines in Mexico after it was unable to provide electricity for several days due to the brutal winter storm that hit Texas, but that it intends to proceed with its proposed restructuring as planned, Reuters reported. Frontera attorney Matthew Fagen of Kirkland & Ellis told U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Marvin Isgur in Houston during a remote hearing that Frontera, which is the only U.S.-based natural gas operator that exports electricity exclusively to Mexico, could not provide the electricity it is required to deliver because the frigid weather “eviscerated” gas supply. Though the company does not know yet whether it will face any penalties as a result, its plan to exit bankruptcy in the spring remains intact, Fagen said.

A suburban Chicago senior living retirement facility is on track to exit bankruptcy next month — for the second time — with creditor voting now underway and conduit issuer approval for its restructuring bonds in hand, Bond Buyer reported. The restructuring gives the facility more breathing room by requiring bondholders to take a haircut and wait longer to recoup their investment. The Park Place of Elmhurst, in the western Chicago suburb of Elmhurst, filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy in December after reaching agreement on a restructuring with holders of a majority of principal from the $141 million remaining from $146 million of bonds issued in 2016 through the Illinois Finance Authority. The COVID-19 pandemic, which has hit many retirement communities hard, hasn’t helped the facility’s fiscal woes but it’s not blamed for the restructuring, its second since opening in 2012. Park Place, which has 300 residents, has fared well compared to many peers. The 2016 bonds were issued to exit its previous bankruptcy in exchange for the remaining principal from the initial $175.5 million unrated 2010 issue. The court approved the facility’s disclosure statement at a hearing late last month and the IFA signed off on the restructuring bonds at its monthly meeting earlier this month. Creditor voting, which includes bondholders, ends March 5 and a confirmation hearing is set for March 16 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, according to trustee filings.

The U.S. Department of Interior, Eagle Specialty Materials (ESM), and the attorneys in Blackjewel’s bankruptcy case on Feb. 19 released a settlement agreement for unpaid royalties on federal coal leases mined by Blackjewel, and its predecessor, Contura, at the Eagle Butte and Belle Ayr mines in Wyoming’s Powder River Basin, according to a commentary in the Wyoming Business Report. According to the legal filing, more than $32 million in royalties are unpaid at the Belle Ayr Mine and $27.8 million in royalties are unpaid at the Eagle Butte Mine, with hundreds of thousands owed in interest. Powder River Basin Resource Council decries the deal struck between the Department of the Interior and ESM, a company that was paid over $80 million to take over the Belle Ayr and Eagle Butte coal mines from Contura during the Blackjewel bankruptcy proceeding in October 2019. The settlement of approximately $61.5 million debt of unpaid royalties and interest for a few cents on the dollar and insecure interest-free future payments and royalties has cost Wyoming and American citizens tens of millions of dollars. Wyoming receives approximately half of all federal coal royalties, so loses half of these unpaid royalties. “This terribly one-sided settlement allows Belle Ayr and Eagle Butte to keep operating for now,” said Bob LeResche, a Resource Council Board member, “but it forgives tens of millions of dollars in royalties that should have been supporting Wyoming schools and other federal projects.” The settlement — made to allow Interior to transfer the coal leases from Blackjewel to ESM — collects only a small portion of the unpaid royalties. Additionally, ESM is already in lengthy payment plans for back taxes owed to the state and Campbell County. Meanwhile, the mines have been reducing production and suffer the same economic challenges other Powder River Basin coal mines are facing. Coal plant closures across the nation are reducing production, which puts any future payments at greater and greater risk.

Department store chain Belk Inc. filed for bankruptcy protection on Tuesday, commencing an ultra-quick timetable intended to lift the Sycamore Partners-owned company out of chapter 11 within around 24 hours, the Wall Street Journal reported. Belk is scheduled to appear today in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Houston to seek confirmation of a restructuring strategy that creditors have already voted unanimously to support. The chapter 11 proposal, announced last month, would trim $450 million in debt from the company’s balance sheet and provide a $225 million capital infusion, supplied by Belk lenders and its private-equity owner Sycamore. The planned restructuring will keep Belk majority owned by Sycamore, a retail specialist that has controlled the company since 2015. With nearly 300 stores, mostly in the Southeast, Belk generated $3.8 billion in revenue in the 12 months ended November, according to Moody’s Investors Service. As of last month, the company was carrying $1.9 billion in debt. Since 2019, three other sizable companies — retailer FullBeauty Brands Inc., information-technology provider Sungard Availability Services and oil-and-gas company Sheridan Holding Co. I LLC — have filed for bankruptcy and secured court approval of their restructurings by the next day, cutting down on administrative fees from longer stays in chapter 11.

Cracks are starting to form in the All Year Management real estate empire after part of its apartment development in a hipster Brooklyn neighborhood filed for bankruptcy, Bloomberg News reported. Evergreen Gardens Mezz LLC, controlled by All Year, sought chapter 11 protection on Monday in the Southern District of New York, according to a petition, listing assets and liabilities of $50 million to $100 million. The debtor is part of the 900-unit Denizen apartment complex, a millennial haven in Bushwick, Brooklyn, developed on the former site of the Rheingold Brewery. Evergreen Gardens was part of the New York City affordable housing lottery, offering 183 units, with a 1-bedroom priced at just over $1,000 per month. Amenities at the award-winning complex include a beer and wine brewery, co-working space, rock climbing and a swimming pool, according to the website. The bankruptcy follows a tough year for All Year Management, which saw the pandemic unravel efforts to manage its web of debt that started running into trouble in 2018, according to the Commercial Observer. All Year, founded by Yoel Goldman and currently run by chief restructuring officer Joel Biran, was started in 2007 and has grown to own more than 150 buildings in gentrifying parts of Brooklyn, according to the Observer and Who Owns What, a website that aggregates New York real estate data.

Auto parts maker Garrett Motion Inc. is potentially headed to mediation with equity holders who are angling for a larger share of the company through its reorganization in bankruptcy court, Reuters reported. Lawyers for the company, represented by Sullivan & Cromwell, and its official equity committee, represented by Glenn Agre Bergman & Fuentes, told U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Michael Wiles in Manhattan on Monday that despite negotiations that occurred over the weekend, the parties were not able to reach a deal with respect to their competing restructuring proposals. They agreed to continue negotiations and if they are unable to reach an agreement, mediation could be beneficial.