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Infowars conspiracy broadcaster Alex Jones, who faces more than $1.4 billion in legal damages for defaming the families of the Sandy Hook shooting victims, has devised a new way to taunt them: wriggling out of paying them the money they are owed, the New York Times reported. Jones, who has an estimated net worth as high as $270 million, declared both business and personal bankruptcy last year as the families won historic verdicts in two lawsuits over his lies about the 2012 shooting that killed 20 first graders and six educators at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. A New York Times review of financial documents and court records filed over the past year found that Jones has transferred millions of dollars in property, cash and business deals to family and friends, including to a new company run by his former personal trainer, all potentially out of reach of creditors. He has also spent heavily on luxuries, including $80,000 on a private jet, bodyguards and a rented villa while he was in Connecticut to testify at a trial last fall.

The Texas agency that regulates the state's power utilities overstepped its bounds and kept power prices too high in the wake of a deadly 2021 deep freeze that led to widespread electricity outages, according to a Texas appeals court ruling on Friday, Reuters reported. The Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) exceeded "limits on its power" by keeping prices at a cap of $9,000 per megawatt hour during the storm, which struck in mid-February two years ago, the Texas 3rd District Court of Appeals in Austin ruled. More than 200 people died during Storm Uri as power and gas prices soared to record highs in parts of Texas and in other U.S. Central states, costing utilities and their consumers billions of dollars. The commission violated requirements that it "use competitive methods to the greatest extent feasible and impose the least impact on competition," the court said in its decision.

SVB Financial Group said today that it filed chapter 11 protection to seek buyers for its assets, days after its former unit Silicon Valley Bank was taken over by U.S. regulators, Reuters reported. The move to commence bankruptcy proceedings comes as emergency measures to shore up confidence have so far failed to dispel worries about a financial contagion. Californian regulators shuttered Silicon Valley Bank last Friday, making it the largest collapse since Washington Mutual went bust during the financial crisis of 2008. The tech lender was forced to sell a portfolio of treasuries and mortgage-backed securities to Goldman Sachs at a $1.8 billion loss after a rise in yields eroded value. To plug that hole, it attempted to raise $2.25 billion in common equity and preferred convertible stock but spooked clients pulled deposits from the bank that led to $42 billion of outflows in a day. Earlier this week, the defunct lender said it was planning to explore strategic alternatives for its businesses including the holding company, SVB Capital and SVB Securities. SVB Securities and SVB Capital's funds and general partner entities are not included in the chapter 11 filing, the company said on Friday, adding it planned to proceed with the process to evaluate alternatives for the businesses, as well its other assets and investments.

U.S. shareholders of Credit Suisse Group AG sued the Swiss bank yesterday, claiming that the bank defrauded them by concealing problems with its finances, Reuters reported. The proposed class action accuses Credit Suisse of deceiving investors by failing to disclose that it was suffering from "significant" customer outflows, and that it had material weaknesses in its internal controls over financial reporting. Shareholders led by Braden Turner said that as the truth became known, and Credit Suisse's largest shareholder said it would not put more money into the bank, investors fled, causing losses as Credit Suisse's stock price sank to a record low. The lawsuit appears to be the first by U.S. investors over recent problems at Credit Suisse, which regained some market confidence on Thursday after securing a lifeline to borrow up to $54 billion from Switzerland's central bank.

The Diocese of Oakland (Calif.) is facing the possibility of bankruptcy due to child sex abuse claims, it announced in a letter on Thursday. According to the letter, which was addressed to “Parishioners and Friends,” the diocese said that it may be facing approximately 330 lawsuits, KRON4.com reported. “As the court continues to process the lawsuits, the total magnitude will become clearer,” read the letter, which was signed by Bishop of Oakland, Most Rev. Michael C. Barber. “However, it is increasingly evident we face a monumental challenge. I have therefore been working with our College of Consultors, our Diocesan Finance Council, and our staff and advisors to discern the best way to support compassionate and equitable compensation for survivors and ensure the continuation of vibrant, Christ-centered parishes to serve our faithful.” The letter goes on to say that the “Diocese is giving strong consideration to filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.” If the Oakland Diocese does file for chapter 11, it would join the Santa Rosa catholic diocese as the second Bay Area diocese to file for bankruptcy over sexual abuse claims in the past week.

Major League Baseball warned America’s biggest local broadcaster of professional sports games that it must televise hundreds of upcoming baseball games — and pay the related fees — even though the company is in bankruptcy, Bloomberg News reported. Two weeks before baseball season starts, Diamond Sports Group has not said whether it will televise games for the 14 teams it has contracts with, MLB attorney James Bromley told the judge overseeing Diamond’s bankruptcy case. Through its Bally Sports brand, Diamond is obligated to broadcast an average of 150 games for each of those teams, Bromley said during a court hearing held by video on Thursday afternoon. “We are very concerned because opening day is just two weeks away,” Bromley said. If Diamond fails to pay any of the fees associated with the games, MLB will ask US Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez to take action, Bromley said. Diamond has the money to broadcast all the basketball and hockey games left for the year under its agreements with those sports leagues, company lawyer Andrew Goldman said during the hearing. He didn’t say whether the company plans to broadcast the baseball games. Diamond filed bankruptcy on Tuesday in Houston, with a proposal to cut more than $8 billion in debt by giving ownership of the company to creditors.

Bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX made transfers of about $2.2 billion to company founder Sam Bankman-Fried through related entities, the company's new management said, Reuters reported. Overall more than $3.2 billion was transferred through payments and loans to company founders and key employees, FTX said in a statement on Wednesday. These payments were made chiefly from Alameda Research hedge fund, FTX said, adding that it made these disclosures by filing schedules and statements of financial affairs with the bankruptcy court. The crypto exchange said the transfers did not include over $240 million spent to purchase luxury property in the Bahamas, political and charitable donations made directly by the FTX debtors, and substantial transfers to non-debtor units in the Bahamas and other jurisdictions.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany announced Wednesday it has filed for chapter 11 protection, CBSAlbany.com reported. Under a chapter 11 status, this means all legal actions against the diocese will pause, including lawsuits involving St. Clare's pensioners. The diocese contends that the St. Clare's crisis was not the reason for filing under chapter 11. In a statement, Bishop Edward Scharfenberger pointed to the Child Victims Act resulting in large settlements, leaving insurance coffers depleted. The diocese said that the bankruptcy filing does not affect parishes and Catholic schools are separately incorporated under New York State’s Religious Corporations Law.

A federal appeals court on Wednesday upheld a $5.6 billion antitrust class-action settlement with more than 12 million retailers that accused Visa Inc. and MasterCard Inc. of improperly fixing credit and debit card fees, Reuters reported. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan rejected claims that a class action should not have been certified because of confusion over who deserved compensation, and that the $523 million of legal fees awarded to the retailers' lawyers was too high. Among the objectors were a group of gas station operators for oil companies such as Chevron and Shell. The operators and the companies both claimed to have been injured after accepting Visa and MasterCard for gas sales. Judge Dennis Jacobs said that although their dispute may need to be resolved in court, it was "no reason" to delay payouts to other class members.

U.S. officials are trying to block key parts of the sale of bankrupt Voyager Digital Ltd. to Binance.US, the American arm of the world’s biggest crypto exchange, while the government appeals a judge’s approval of the deal, Bloomberg News reported. he government opposes any limits on its ability to punish anyone involved in the proposal and a related bankruptcy-exit plan that Bankruptcy Judge Michael E. Wiles approved last week, a Justice Department lawyer said in court yesterday. Other aspects of the deal could go forward, but not the legal protections included as part of Voyager’s chapter 11 plan, Assistant U.S. Attorney Larry Fogleman told Wiles. Wiles agreed to hold a hearing Wednesday to decide whether to block the plan’s exculpation provisions. The provisions, which are routine in corporate bankruptcy cases, protect people from being held personally liable for implementing a court-approved plan. Under its bankruptcy plan, Voyager has the option of selling itself to Binance.US or liquidating its assets and distributing the money to creditors. Judge Wiles gave the company permission to do either after four days of contentious bankruptcy hearings.