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The judge overseeing chemical maker Hexion Inc.’s bankruptcy approved its $2 billion debt-cutting plan, turning the company over to financial backers that include Blackstone Group LP’s credit arm, Monarch Alternative Capital LP and Cyrus Capital Partners LP, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The balance-sheet restructuring, approved yesterday by Judge Kevin Gross of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del., calls for senior and junior bondholders of the Columbus, Ohio-based manufacturer to take ownership of the business from Apollo Global Management LLC. The reorganization plan, which received near-unanimous approval by the creditors who voted on it, will reduce Hexion’s debt to $1.5 billion from $3.5 billion, with $2 billion being converted into equity. The multinational company, in which Apollo has backed for 14 years and holds a 90 percent stake, is also looking to sell at least $100 million in Hexion stock through an initial public offering, according to court papers. The company’s new board initially will consist of seven directors, including Chief Executive Officer Craig Rogerson. Other directors will be picked by a board committee made up of representatives from Cyrus, Monarch, Blackstone’s GSO Capital Partners, GoldenTree Asset Management LP, Brigade Capital Management LP and Davidson Kempner Capital Management LP. Recoveries for the most senior bondholders, owed about $2.4 billion, include $1.45 billion in cash and 72.5 percent of new Hexion common shares. Junior bondholders owed more than $1 billion are receiving 27.5 percent of new Hexion common shares.

Since Richard Posner’s surprise retirement from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in 2017, he’s focused much of his energy on making the justice system more accessible and responsive to pro se litigants. That impulse has informed the retired judge's latest move: Posner is entering the world of litigation finance, according to American Lawyer. But he’s not taking a position with one of the giants of the nascent industry. Instead, he’s signed on to serve as an adviser to Legalist, a San Francisco start-up founded by two Harvard undergrads in 2016. “The principal motive for my retirement was the failure of the court to treat litigants without financial resources fairly,” Posner said in a statement issued by Legalist. “Litigation finance patches an important hole for businesses with valid claims who lack the funds to hire an attorney.” Legalist was initially backed by startup incubator Y Combinator and claims to be the world’s first AI-powered litigation financier. The company relies on an algorithm built on federal and state court records to determine whether a given case will be successful.