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A bankruptcy judge approved GT Advanced Technologies Inc.'s outline of its plan to exit bankruptcy protection putting the equipment manufacturer on course for a relatively smooth end to a chapter 11 reorganization triggered by the collapse of a supply deal with Apple Inc., Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review reported today. Bankruptcy Judge Henry J. Boroff on Tuesday set a March 3 date for a confirmation hearing on the company's plan after approving a plan-disclosure document. Tapped as a supplier of scratch- and shatter-resistant sapphire screen material for Apple's smartphones, GT piled on debt and transformed its business operation. Apple rejected the material GT produced, for reasons that were disputed. GT resorted to bankruptcy in October 2014 to repair its tattered finances.

Relativity hoped to get approval yesterday to emerge from bankruptcy, but questions have emerged about its efforts to find new investors and the amount of money it has been able to raise, Variety reported today. Despite an aggressive effort by attorneys for the studio to paint a portrait of the studio well positioned to re-emerge from the financial wilderness, re-invigorated and blessed with a new creative vision, Bankruptcy Judge Michael Wiles said that Relativity was not ready to exit chapter 11 protection. Wiles said that he was worried about the studio’s level of equity financing. He noted there are a number of outstanding creditor and vendor objections, including an ongoing legal tussle with Netflix over a distribution agreement.

Quiksilver Inc., the California-based surfwear and skatewear retailer, won final bankruptcy-court approval of a plan that restructures some $800 million in debt and ensures a fresh start for the company under its new private-equity owner, Oaktree Capital Management, the Wall Street Journal reported today. In approving the plan, Bankruptcy Judge Brendan Shannon cleared the way for the company to “start the ball rolling” and exit chapter 11 protection as soon as next week. Under a deal reached before Quiksilver filed for bankruptcy, Oaktree and other secured bondholders will forgive $279 million of bond debt in exchange for control of the retailer. Oaktree holds about 75 percent of that debt and will receive a majority stake in the restructured company, court papers show.

Vantage Drilling won confirmation yesterday of a chapter 11 plan that will chop its debt load and set the oil-and-gas drilling company up to compete in an increasingly rough market, Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review reported today. Bankruptcy Judge Brendan Shannon approved Vantage's balance-sheet reshaping yesterday at a hearing. The bankruptcy restructuring moved swiftly, the judge said, but the speed was justified by the "absolute tumult" in the oil and gas industry. Vantage owns three state-of-the-art ships and four rigs designed to drill in ultradeep ocean waters. The company is trimming its debt load to survive the drop in oil and gas prices, as well as to improve its chances of staying busy in a market in which work is hard to find. The company filed for protection in December, claiming support from most of its lenders for the chapter 11 plan, which will reduce secured debt of $2.6 billion to less than $1 billion, or even lower, depending on what investors do with new convertible notes issued under the plan. Read more. (Subscription required.) 

For further analysis of oil and gas bankruptcies, be sure to pick up a copy of ABI’s When Gushers Go Dry: The Essentials of Oil & Gas Bankruptcy. 

TransCoastal Corp., one of the latest victims of falling oil and gas prices, on Monday won approval from a bankruptcy judge for its reorganization plan, Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review reported today. The pre-packaged plan, for which the Texas oil and gas company secured creditors' support before filing for bankruptcy, calls on its senior lender to swap roughly $21 million in debt for new equity in the reorganized company. When TransCoastal filed for chapter 11 protection on Dec. 8, it sought to reduce its debt by about 85 percent. The restructuring plan also called for TransCoastal to access up to $4 million in new capital. Read more. (Subscription required.) 

For further analysis of oil and gas bankruptcies, be sure to pick up a copy of ABI’s When Gushers Go Dry: The Essentials of Oil & Gas Bankruptcy.