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Bristow Group Files for Chapter 11 Protection

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Helicopter transportation services company Bristow Group Inc. filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Saturday after reaching a deal with senior bondholders on a plan to slash its debt load, the Wall Street Journal reported. The Houston-based company, which provides helicopter transport to offshore oil and gas drillers and has business units focused on search, rescue and aircraft-support services, said it has the support of the “overwhelming majority” of its parent company senior secured bondholders on the terms of a restructuring-support pact outlining the terms of its debt-cutting plan. Bristow said that it has lined up a $75 million bankruptcy loan to fund its business without interruption during the chapter 11 case. The bondholders backing the restructuring lent the company another $75 million before the chapter 11 filing, the company said.

North Dakota’s Triangle Petroleum Files for Bankruptcy

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Triangle Petroleum Corp., which has interests in North Dakota’s energy and commercial real-estate markets, filed for bankruptcy Wednesday with a reorganization plan under which bondholder J.P. Morgan Securities LLC will get all of the equity, the Wall Street Journal reported. Triangle’s debt consists mostly of a $2 million secured term loan from JPMorgan Chase Bank NA and $167 million under a secured bond J.P. Morgan Securities bought from another investor. J.P. Morgan Securities was no longer willing to extend forbearance, which would expire May 19, Chief Executive Ryan McGee said in a filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del. Triangle said that J.P. Morgan Securities is the sole holder of the secured bond, which is the only class entitled to vote on the reorganization plan, and that the bondholder has agreed to the balance sheet restructuring. J.P. Morgan Securities is expected to recover up to 43 cents on the dollar of what it is owed, the filings said. The company said that general unsecured claims — those of small vendors and professionals — will be paid in full. The $2 million secured loan will be converted into exit financing. J.P. Morgan Securities will select the new board of the reorganized business. Equity investors will receive nothing under the plan. Denver-based Triangle’s shale drilling operations are focused in the Williston Basin in North Dakota and Montana.

Bankruptcy Court Approves Initial Loan to Keep Reading Eagle Company Operating

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The Reading (Pa.) Eagle Company's first foray into a courtroom in its chapter 11 protection case was straightforward as a host of first-day motions made by the company were considered, the Reading Eagle reported. The motions, 11 in total, were needed to keep the company operating while a buyer is sought. Perhaps the most important motion to that end was an initial approval of a loan. The company is seeking to borrow $1.5 million from Black Walnut Media LLC, which is a subsidiary of Reading Eagle Company President and CEO Peter D. Barbey's Black Walnut Holdings LLC. The company is already in debt to Black Walnut Media for more than $17 million after it bought debt the company owed to Santander Bank in 2016. Chief Judge Richard E. Fehling of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Pennsylvania's Eastern District signed an interim order yesterday, allowing the company to borrow $550,000. That amount was increased from the $250,000 that the company originally asked for on an interim basis because the date set for a hearing on the final order was scheduled for April 9. The $250,000 would not have lasted that long, according to a 13-week budget the company submitted to the court. At the April 9 hearing, the company will ask for permission to borrow the remaining $950,000.

Florida Contractor Seeks Bankruptcy Deal Over Fatal Bridge Collapse

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The contractor for a pedestrian bridge at Florida International University that collapsed is plotting a return to the construction business while negotiating a bankruptcy settlement fund for those killed or injured in the accident, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. Magnum Construction Management LLC entered chapter 11 last week after the bridge collapse last March set off a federal investigation, sparked 18 personal injury and wrongful-death lawsuits and cost the company $200 million in project revenue. Company lawyer Jordi Guso said during MCM’s initial appearance yesterday in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Miami that the contractor was optimistic it could negotiate a settlement to the lawsuits, regain certifications and once again bid for construction work. While those lawsuits are now paused by the bankruptcy, Guso said that MCM would participate in a mediation scheduled for March 20 in an effort to reach a global settlement.

Warrior Golf Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

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A company that makes Warrior-brand golf clubs and manages 18 golf courses filed for bankruptcy after missing two key payments, the latest in a series of setbacks that have plagued the business, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. Irvine, Calif.-based Westwind Manor Resort Association Inc. and related businesses sought protection from creditors on Monday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Laredo, Texas, with about $55 million in liabilities. Its Warrior Custom Golf Inc. business makes clubs and has about 70 employees. It typically has annual revenue of about $15 million. Over the years, the private company also has raised more than $100 million from about 2,200 investors to buy golf courses. That division has about 270 employees. The courses generate about $13 million in annual revenue but had a $680,000 operating loss last year. Jeremy Rosenthal, chief restructuring officer, laid out several reasons for the bankruptcy, including a drop in the number of golfers, too many courses, and rising water, equipment and labor costs.

Courier Company BeavEx Files for Chapter 11 Protection

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Express delivery service BeavEx Holding Corp. filed for bankruptcy protection Monday and plans to sell itself to a strategic buyer, saying efforts to diversify its business after scanners reduced demand for paper-check couriers have resulted in sustained losses, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The Atlanta, Ga.-based company, which has 69 leased facilities in 31 states, has more than $50 million in liabilities, according to a filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del. It has 369 employees and has lined up a $1 million loan to fund its business during the case. BeavEx plans to sell most of its assets, including its Guardian Medical Logistics unit, to an affiliate of TFI International Inc., which also provides transportation and logistics services, for $7.2 million subject to better bids in bankruptcy court.

Payless ShoeSource Seeks Bankruptcy Protection Again

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U.S. discount retailer Payless ShoeSource Inc. today filed for chapter 11 protection for the second time, along with its North American subsidiaries, and said that it would wind down all North American stores by the end of May, Reuters reported. The retailer will close about 2,500 stores in North America starting from the end of March and wind down its e-commerce operations. “The prior proceedings left the company with too much remaining debt, too large a store footprint and a yet-to-be realized systems and corporate overhead structure consolidation,” Chief Restructuring Officer Stephen Marotta said. Stores outside North America were not included in the chapter 11 filing and will continue operations, the retailer added. The company exited bankruptcy in 2017 with about $400 million in loans, after slashing its debt pile from over $800 million, according to court papers. Payless listed both assets and liabilities in a range of $500 million to $1 billion in a filing in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Missouri.

Actual Brewing Company Files for Bankruptcy

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Actual Brewing Company filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy with the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Ohio on Feb. 14, ColumbusAlive.com reported. The filing, which lists $500,001-$1 million in assets and liabilities, comes a week after multiple women making claims of sexual assault against brewery founder Fred Lee. Lee voluntarily stepped down as CEO, replaced by acting CEO Nicole Felter, whose signature appears on the bankruptcy filing.
 

Johnson & Johnson Talc Supplier Files for Bankruptcy

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Imerys Talc America Inc. has filed for bankruptcy protection as it faces accusations that the talc it supplied for Johnson & Johnson’s baby powder causes cancer, the WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The company filed for chapter 11 protection yesterday after spending tens of millions of dollars to defend itself against lawsuits alleging its talcum powder causes ovarian cancer and mesothelioma. The talc supplier faces claims from more than 14,600 people, a number that has grown dramatically in recent years in the wake of large verdicts against Imerys and baby powder maker Johnson & Johnson. The two companies contend talc doesn’t cause cancer or contain asbestos and Johnson & Johnson has succeeded in getting some verdicts overturned on appeal. The Imerys filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del., immediately suspends all talc-related litigation against the U.S.-based mining company and will enable Imerys officials to negotiate payouts with those who have sued them.

Robert Allen Duralee files Chapter 11

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Major fabric supplier Robert Allen Duralee Group Furniture has filed for chapter 11 protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court’s New York Eastern District, FurnitureToday.com reported. The Robert Allen Duralee Group is a resource for luxury home décor with a product line comprising more than 45,000 SKUs of fabric, trim, decorative hardware and furniture within multiple brands from commercial to residential. The filing indicates more than 6,000 creditors and interested parties, with the top 30 unsecured creditors owed $12.8 million. The top five creditors are listed as Valdese Weavers, $2.575 million; Sumec Textile Co., $1.683 million; Triplex Shanghai Enterprises, $978,635.97; EDPA USA/Dilhan Texsil, $745,722.40; and P Kaufmann, $650,051.54. The filing lists RAD Group assets of between $50 million and $100 million. Mark T. Power of the New York City law firm Hahn & Hessen LLP represented Robert Allen Duralee Group in the filing.