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The former operator of Delmonico’s in New York, yesteryear scene of Wall Street deals brokered over wedge salads and buttery steaks, has filed bankruptcy amid an ownership fight with its landlord over the storied restaurant’s name, Bloomberg News reported. Ocinomled Ltd., which began operating Delmonico’s in the late 1990s, filed for chapter 11 protection on Monday and listed $950,000 in unpaid rent allegedly owed to an affiliate of real estate investment firm Time Equities Inc. The affiliate, Beaver Equities Group LP, owns the historic building in Manhattan’s Financial District that houses the restaurant, which is temporarily closed. The bankruptcy follows years of litigation between Ocinomled’s former partners and Beaver, which argues it acquired the Delmonico’s mark around the time it purchased the building bearing the restaurant’s name. Ocinomled’s owners contend they own the Delmonico’s name and common law mark in New York along with the goodwill associated with it. In any event, the Time Equities affiliate and restaurateurs who say they’re working to reopen Delmonico’s argue Ocinomled’s lease expired at the end of 2022 and that new operators now have a 15-year deal to run the establishment. Lawyer Rodney Austin, who represents the new operators — called DRG Hospitality Group — said Ocinomled’s bankruptcy will have no impact on plans to revive Delmonico’s, which closed during the COVID-19 pandemic. His clients are working toward a September re-opening, he said.

OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma may proceed with a bankruptcy settlement that protects its Sackler family owners from lawsuits, despite a potential U.S. Supreme Court appeal in the case, a U.S. court ruled yesterday. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit approved Purdue's bankruptcy plan in May, ruling that the company can shield its owners from opioid lawsuits in exchange for a $6 billion contribution to the company's broader bankruptcy settlement. The New York-based court ruled that U.S. bankruptcy law allows legal protections for non-bankrupt parties, like the Sacklers, in extraordinary circumstances. Following the ruling, the U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ) bankruptcy watchdog asked the court to pause its approval of the bankruptcy plan to allow time for a potential appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. The DOJ argued that Purdue should not be allowed to move forward with its restructuring before the Supreme Court had a chance to weigh in on legal protections for non-bankrupt entities, an issue that has divided bankruptcy courts across the U.S. The DOJ said it intended to file a Supreme Court petition by Aug. 28. Purdue had argued that a delay was unwarranted and that there was only a slim chance that the Supreme Court would agree to hear the appeal.

Two more insurance companies have agreed to sign on to a deal that will bring sexual abuse victims’ potential payout in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester’s long-running chapter 11 bankruptcy to more than $126 million, the Rochester Beacon reported. Negotiations involving the diocese, abuse survivors and insurance companies that wrote liability policies for the diocese when the decades-old abuses occurred have delayed a resolution of the case for nearly four years. The liability carriers will ultimately foot most of the final bill. In a July 21 court filing, the diocese notes agreements by the Interstate Insurance Co. to pay $50 million and First Insurance Co. to pay $750,000. The two insurers’ long-awaited capitulation moves the bankruptcy a tantalizing step closer to resolution. But one company, Continental Insurance, known as CNA, is stubbornly refusing to sign on to a settlement that the diocese and all other insurers have now agreed to, a holdout that could augur further delay in survivors’ payout.

Humanigen is running out of options as talks over a reverse merger have collapsed and, with efforts to find another deal or raise funding failing, the biotech is considering filing for bankruptcy in the third quarter, FierceBiotech.com reported. The New Jersey-based biotech has been on the ropes since its anti-human GM-CSF monoclonal antibody failed to improve outcomes in hospitalized COVID-19 patients last year. Humanigen was already reeling from the FDA’s rejection of its request for emergency use authorization and the stock has stayed firmly rooted in penny stock territory ever since the late-phase flop. By the end of March, Humanigen was down to its last $3.1 million but a non-binding letter of intent with a private biopharma company presented an exit strategy. Humanigen was in exclusive negotiations over a stock-for-stock deal and seeking external financing in connection with the reverse merger.

Less than a month after laying off all of its workers, Anderson-based battery manufacturer EnerDel Inc. is declaring bankruptcy, the Indianapolis Business Journal reported. The company filed for chapter 7 bankruptcy July 13 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District Court of Indiana, claiming nearly $14 million in assets and $47 million in liabilities, according to the bankruptcy petition. The move was not unexpected. In June, the company fired its workforce without warning, former employees of the company told IBJ. It’s unclear how many workers were affected by the shutdown, but the company reported having 60 employees last year when it was acquired by Paul Herbert, a longtime board member at the company.

A management firm overseeing the development of a 320-acre youth sports complex in Arizona ended up overspending and shifting some money intended for construction into its own account, according to a bankruptcy court filing, Bloomberg News reported. The former manager, Legacy Sports, was tied to Randy Miller, a former professional baseball player who was the driving force behind the complex known as Legacy Park. Miller spent more than a decade pitching his vision for the facility, and a separate non-profit entity he founded with his son, Legacy Cares, was able to raise $280 million of debt in the municipal bond market starting in 2020 to help build it. But the complex faced construction delays, labor shortages and cancellations amid the pandemic. Its opening was pushed back, and even when it did start operating in 2022, COVID spikes cut into business. In May, Legacy Cares filed for bankruptcy. In a filing last week, Legacy Cares said that Legacy Sports, a for-profit entity that is no longer managing the facility, expected to be able to raise more money for the complex, and therefore spent money on additional improvements beyond the construction budget outlined in the offering materials for the bonds. Legacy Sports also asked for bond proceeds for its own operating expenses, beyond what the firm was entitled to receive, depleting funds available for construction, the filing said.

Party City Holdco Inc. is retaining documents and data in connection with a Securities and Exchange Commission probe, according to bankruptcy court papers, Bloomberg News reported. The regulator sent a letter to the bankrupt party supplies retailer on July 12 asking it to preserve and retain information “relevant to an ongoing investigation,” Party City said in court papers filed on Friday. The letter came a little more than a month after its longtime auditor, Ernst & Young LLP, resigned. The disclosure was included in a section on the accountant’s resignation. Additional details about the nature of the investigation, including its target, weren’t disclosed. Party City said it’s complying with the SEC’s request. After working as Party City’s financial auditor for more than two decades, EY quit in June in the wake of a disagreement about how and when the company should have warned the market there was substantial doubt about its ability to survive, the company said in a securities filing. “The company strongly disagrees with EY’s assertions in its resignation letter to the extent that they inaccurately imply that the company refused to make any required disclosures under the federal securities laws,” Party City said in the filing.
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AppHarvest said that it is pursuing a financial and operational transition, using chapter 11 bankruptcy, that would allow the company to reduce its outstanding liabilities, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The sustainable food company said business operations will continue at its farms, including shipping product to grocery store chains, restaurants and food-service outlets. To pursue its transition, AppHarvest has filed voluntary petitions for protection under chapter 11 of the U.S. bankruptcy code in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. The company also has obtained a commitment from Equilibrium, its largest secured creditor, to provide $30 million of debtor-in-possession financing to provide the necessary liquidity to support operations at the AppHarvest Morehead, AppHarvest Richmond and AppHarvest Somerset farms during the cchapter 11 process. The DIP financing is subject to approval of the court. AppHarvest is pursuing a transition of its AppHarvest Berea operations to its distribution partner, Mastronardi Produce, or one of its affiliates, in exchange for $3.75 million, additional incremental funding and support for the company’s restructuring plan.

Foxo Technologies, a Minneapolis-based biotech startup, is facing the prospect of bankruptcy if it cannot quickly secure new financing, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported. Without the financing, "it will be unable to fund its operations," the company said in a Friday filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Besides bankruptcy, the company, which went public in September 2022, will look at dissolving or liquidating assets should need be, the filing said. Foxo also is reducing staff from 22 to 15 employees to cut operating expenses, the filing said. Foxo developed a saliva test that could be used to identify biomarkers to measure longevity. The concept was to market the data to life insurance companies. Foxo reported in May that first quarter revenue was $13,000, down from $40,000 in the same quarter the year before. Its net loss was $7.6 million, compared with a net loss of $12.3 million. Foxo went public last September in a merger with a Texas-based special purpose acquisition company. On its first day of trading the company's stock opened at $9.15 per share. On Friday Foxo's stock closed at 15 cents per share. Two months after going public, Foxo ousted CEO Jon Sabes and his brother, Chief Operating Officer Steven Sabes. In March, Foxo disclosed that it was under SEC investigation. The agency was seeking documents related to Sabes' exit from the company.

Master Lending Group LLC, a local to Savannah, Ga., and private investment group owned by Gregory Hirsch, filed for chapter 7 protection on July 6, WSAV.com reported. The hedge fund has between 100 and 199 creditors, according to a court filing, with the amount of losses to individual investors ranging from $10,000 to $3 million. In the court document, Hirsch lists over $6 million in property owned along Bull Street, West Victory and East River Street, just under $1 million in cash and $95,000 in a checking account, along with a $5 million life insurance policy. Those amounts do not add up to the total owed of $42.996 million. Along with the individual investor losses, the chapter 7 filing lists that Master Lending LLC and Gregory Hirsch are in breach of promissory note loans totaling $16,000,000.