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A U.S. bankruptcy judge approved on Friday procedures for auctioning the film studio co-founded by Harvey Weinstein, who was fired by the company last year in the wake of allegations of sexual assault, Reuters reported. The Weinstein Co. filed for bankruptcy last month with an initial or so-called stalking horse bid from an affiliate of private equity firm Lantern Capital Partners, estimated to be worth around $310 million. Interested buyers now have until April 30 to submit a higher bid. If multiple bids qualify, an auction will be held at the office of law firm Richards, Layton & Finger in Wilmington, Delaware, on May 4. More than 70 women have accused Harvey Weinstein, who was one of Hollywood’s most influential men, of sexual misconduct, including rape and assault. Weinstein has denied having non-consensual sex with anyone. When the allegations against Harvey Weinstein became public in October, the company’s board fired him, and Hollywood heavyweights distanced themselves from the studio. Bankruptcy will allow Weinstein Co. assets to be sold stripped of liabilities. Movie producer Killer Content Inc. said in January it might make a bid if the company was put into chapter 11 protection. Read more. 

In related news, James Stang of Pachulski Stang Ziehl & Jones, who has represented sexual abuse victims in Catholic Church bankruptcies, is now tasked with getting the best deal possible for women who allege Harvey Weinstein’s now-bankrupt studio concealed years of sexual misconduct by its co-founder and former chief executive, the Wall Street Journal reported. The group of creditors he represents includes women whose claims for damages against the studio must now be reconciled in bankruptcy court. Women who have filed lawsuits against Weinstein Co. are now unsecured creditors with claims in the company’s bankruptcy. Any additional women who come forward with misconduct allegations against the company will also have unsecured claims, which like all claims in chapter 11 will be meted out in an eventual debt-repayment plan that is subject to bankruptcy court approval. Read more. (Subscription required.)

Don't miss the "Restructuring a Firm After Discrimination or Sexual Harassment Claims" panel at #ABISpringMeeting! Hon. Judith K. Fitzgerald (ret.) of Tucker Arensberg provides a preview. Click here to register. 

The committee representing Weinstein Co. creditors said yesterday that it is examining whether a $310 million offer from investment firm Lantern Capital represents “a fair price” for the troubled film and TV studio’s assets, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The statement, made in a filing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del., comes a day before lawyers representing the company co-founded by Harvey Weinstein are expected to ask a judge to sign off on both the sale procedures and the Lantern offer, which would set the floor for the studio’s assets and would be subject to higher bids at a potential auction. The speed with which Weinstein Co. has been attempting to sell its assets in chapter 11 has been a source of concern for some creditors. The unsecured creditors committee, which is represented by law firm Pachulski Stang Ziehl & Jones, includes two women who have sued the studio and Harvey Weinstein individually. Advisers to the Weinstein Co. and Lantern agreed to push back the day of the proposed auction from May 2 to May 4 and also made other concessions to the sale process, according to Thursday’s filing. A hearing to approve a sale would be pushed back to May 8. Read more.

Don't miss the "Restructuring a Firm After Discrimination or Sexual Harassment Claims" panel at #ABISpringMeeting! Hon. Judith K. Fitzgerald (ret.) of Tucker Arensberg provides a preview. Click here to register.

The lawsuit brought by family members of those killed in the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School has been watched closely over years of winding its way through the court system. But a new hurdle stands in the way of a much-awaited ruling, the New York Times reported. Remington, one of the nation’s oldest gunmakers and a defendant in the lawsuit, recently filed for bankruptcy as its sales have declined and debts have mounted. The company manufactured the AR-15-style weapon used by the gunman in the 2012 attack in Newtown, Conn., in which 26 people, including 20 first graders, were killed. The case is now before the Connecticut Supreme Court, where families brought an appeal with the aim of bringing the case to a jury trial. Remington’s bankruptcy does not guard the company from potential liability, but it has stalled the court from issuing a ruling on the lawsuit until the company emerges from the process. The court has been weighing the case after hearing oral arguments last year.

Women who have sued Harvey Weinstein for alleged sexual harassment and assault will sit alongside business creditors on a panel that will play a crucial role in wrapping up the affairs of the movie and TV studio he co-founded, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. Weinstein Co. filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on March 19 and is headed toward a sale to investment firm Lantern Capital or a higher bidder at a potential auction. The official creditors committee, which was chosen Wednesday by the U.S. Trustee, a Justice Department official monitoring the case, in a meeting at a hotel in Wilmington, Del., will speak for all unsecured creditors in the case, as Weinstein Co. deals with the fallout from allegations of sexual assault and harassment by Weinstein. Members of the committee include Sandeep Rehal, a former assistant to Weinstein who claims in a sex discrimination lawsuit that she was forced to deliver injectable erectile dysfunction drugs to him. Also on the panel is Louisette Geiss, one of the leaders of a federal class action. Geiss alleges she met with Weinstein to pitch him a script, and was assaulted, threatened and falsely imprisoned. Read more.

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A $25 million settlement between the Crosier religious order and victims of clergy sexual abuse was approved by a bankruptcy judge yesterday, becoming the first such settlement adopted in Minnesota, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported. An objection filed last week by the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis was withdrawn after the parties added language protecting the archdiocese from possible future lawsuits involving Crosier clergy. The Crosiers, the abuse victims and their attorneys attributed the swift settlement to a spirit of cooperation and respect that shaped settlement discussions. Sixty-seven abuse victims filed claims in bankruptcy court against the Phoenix-based religious order, which has a community in the Minnesota town of Onamia. Most of the sex abuse occurred between the 1960s and 1980s. It involved teenage boys at the Crosiers' boarding school and young altar boys who served at the Holy Cross Church next door.

With its bankruptcy, the Weinstein Co. has tossed out the non-disclosure agreements that officials say its co-founder and former CEO Harvey Weinstein wielded as a weapon in his sexual predation, bringing with it the possibility of a whole new wave of victims coming forward, the Associated press reported. "Since October, it has been reported that Harvey Weinstein used non-disclosure agreements as a secret weapon to silence his accusers," a Weinstein Co. statement said. "Effective immediately, those 'agreements' end. No one should be afraid to speak out or coerced to stay quiet." The rare move from a major business is likely to send new witnesses and victims to media outlets and investigators, which put out fresh calls Tuesday for their stories. That's because the Weinstein Co. only has the power to end agreements made by the company and not Weinstein himself, meaning the decision’s effect will be primarily on current and former employees. Cris Armenta, a lawyer representing accusers in a proposed class-action lawsuit against the Weinstein Co., said she fears that because so many of the agreements are with Weinstein himself and still apply, the impact may not be major. Read more. 

Don't miss the "Restructuring a Firm After Discrimination or Sexual Harassment Claims" panel at the Annual Spring Meeting. Click here to watch a panel preview and click here to register. 

The judge in charge of the Weinstein Co. bankruptcy case, Judge Mary Walrath, is one of the country’s most experienced chapter 11 jurists, a legal hardliner and a potential nightmare for the board of the embattled movie studio, according to a WSJ Pro Bankruptcy commentary. Bankruptcy will offer no way out of legal trouble for Weinstein executives accused in multiple lawsuits of aiding the alleged sexual predations of studio co-founder Harvey Weinstein, if Judge Walrath’s track record is any indication. A nearly 20-year veteran of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del., Judge Walrath is known for ruling quickly and decisively, often issuing decisions from the bench. She has been described by one lawyer who has practiced before her for years as a “classic district court judge.” The implication is that she’s not prone to wink at corporate foibles in the name of saving a business, according to the commentary. Read more. 

*The views expressed in this commentary are from the author/publication cited, are meant for informative purposes only, and are not an official position of ABI.

The Weinstein Company’s bankruptcy filing will not protect ex-chairman Harvey Weinstein, who has been accused of sexual harassment and assault, an attorney for the studio told U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Mary Walrath yesterday, Reuters reported. “We are not here to protect Harvey Weinstein,” attorney Paul Zumbro said. “(The Weinstein Company) filing for bankruptcy relief in no way affects anyone’s ability to pursue civil or criminal claims against Harvey Weinstein.” Weinstein, who co-founded the company with his brother Bob and once was one of Hollywood’s most influential men, has been accused of sexual misconduct including rape by more than 70 women. He has denied having non-consensual sex with anyone. It has been unclear how his alleged victims would be treated in a potential bankruptcy filing. Read more.

Don't miss the "Restructuring a Firm After Discrimination or Sexual Harassment Claims" panel at the Annual Spring Meeting. Click here to register.

The Roman Catholic Diocese for eastern Montana has filed a motion seeking dismissal of its bankruptcy case as it tries to settle claims from people who say that they were sexually abused as children by diocese priests, nuns or other church employees, the Associated Press reported. The Diocese of Great Falls-Billings filed for bankruptcy protection last year in an effort to negotiate a financial settlement, but those talks have reached an impasse. The diocese's court filing on Tuesday says that the two sides are a substantial distance apart and the ongoing legal costs are draining resources available for a possible settlement. Attorneys for the 82 claimants argue the assets of 14 the diocese's 50 parishes should be available to settle claims. The diocese counters that those funds are being held in trust on behalf of the parishes and should not be part of any settlement.