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Attorneys for failed electric car maker CODA Holdings have withdrawn a request asking a bankruptcy judge to approve up to $425,000 in bonuses for 16 top managers and directors, the Associated Press reported yesterday. The company withdrew the request prior to a hearing yesterday after it drew objections from creditors and a U.S. Trustee. Attorneys for the government and CODA's creditors' committee argued in court papers last week that CODA's proposed bankruptcy financing and sale plans unfairly benefit a group of debtors, led by an affiliate of Fortress Investment Group, who are seeking to acquire the company for $25 million.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc., which is already providing Arcapita Bank $350 million in bankruptcy exit financing, is now seeking to give the Bahrain investment firm a $175 million bankruptcy loan that would pay off existing lender Fortress Investment Group LLC, Dow Jones Newswires reported yesterday. Arcapita said in a court filing yesterday that the Goldman loan would pay off the $105 million still owed to Fortress and later convert into the $350 million exit loan that Goldman is already providing. With Arcapita obliged to pay off the Fortress loan by June 14, the company said that it needs the Goldman loan approved at a hearing on June 10, the day before the company plans to ask a judge to confirm its plan to sell off its assets in order to pay back creditors.

Ahern Rentals Inc. and its bondholders have agreed to a path out of chapter 11 bankruptcy for the construction-equipment company, narrowly avoiding a showdown over rival restructuring plans, the Wall Street Journal reported today. In court papers filed on Friday, Ahern said that its success in lining up bankruptcy-exit financing has allowed it to improve payment terms for bondholders owed about $268 million, thereby winning their support for the plan. Under the amended plan, which a bankruptcy judge will consider at a June 5 hearing, the bondholders would receive immediate payment of $268 million in cash and the chance to receive another $25 million if the company changes hands within two years of exiting chapter 11. The bondholders would also receive another $10 million to cover the legal fees they racked up in Ahern's bankruptcy case, which has been pending since December 2011.

MFM Industries Inc., the maker of cat litter under brands including Hartz and Mighty Cat, filed for chapter 11 protection amid litigation-related debt with plans to sell the business, Bloomberg News reported yesterday. The Ocala, Fla.-based company listed as much as $50 million each in assets and liabilities in its chapter 11 papers filed yesterday. The 2011 lawsuit, resulting in an $809,000 judgment against MFM, was filed by Terex Financial Services Inc. alleging that MFM was in default of an equipment lease. In addition, a secured creditor, Palmer Resources LLC, is demanding about $5.2 million from a defaulted note, according to court papers.

A bankruptcy judge has approved the reorganization plan for School Specialty Inc. in its chapter 11 bankruptcy case, the Milwaukee Business Journal reported on Friday. Under the plan, School Specialty will reduce its total debt obligations by half and be able to secure $320 million in new financing. Existing common stock will be extinguished, and no distributions will be made to holders of the company’s current equity.

Attorneys for the federal government and unsecured creditors have filed objections to electric car maker CODA Holdings' bankruptcy plans, the Associated Press reported on Friday. Court papers filed on Friday argue that CODA's bankruptcy financing and sale plans unfairly benefit a group of debtors seeking to acquire the company. Lenders led by a Fortress Investment Group affiliate are proposing a credit bid of $25 million to take over the company. Other objections filed Friday involve concerns about obligations of the new owners to adhere to federal environmental and vehicle safety laws, and proposed bonuses for top executives and directors at Los Angeles-based CODA.

AMF Bowling Worldwide Inc. won court approval to send its chapter 11 plan, which calls for its merger with upscale bowling alley chain Bowlmor, to its creditors for a vote, Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review reported today. Creditors must cast their votes by June 20, court papers show, so that Bankruptcy Judge Kevin R. Huennekens may consider confirming the plan at a June 25 hearing. Under the restructuring plan, AMF would merge with Bowlmor to create a new company that would be known as Bowlmor AMF.

The Texas company that once held the license to sell the Zerona fat-melting laser machines, which offers incision-free liposuction in the offices of cosmetic surgeons, has filed for bankruptcy protection to try to keep its grip on its recently terminated licensing agreement with the laser’s manufacturer, the Wall Street Journal Bankruptcy Beat blog reported on Friday. Primcogent Solutions LLC filed for chapter 11 protection on May 20, claiming that the laser’s manufacturer misled company officials into thinking that roughly 600 lasers were out in the market and generating revenue when the two groups entered into a licensing and distribution deal in late 2011. Primcogent officials said in court papers that the Zerona laser users later began returning them sooner than they expected, making it tough for the company to make payments on a $12 million loan and the royalty payments owed to the laser’s manufacturer, Erchonia Corp.

Pittsburgh Corning Corp.’s bankruptcy judge overruled final objections by insurance companies trying to halt the reorganization of the building-supply company, Bloomberg News reported on Saturday. Bankruptcy Judge Judith Fitzgerald in Pittsburgh refused on Friday to reconsider her initial approval of the reorganization plan, which relies partly on insurance proceeds to pay victims of asbestos exposure. Last week, insurers led by Mt. McKinley Insurance Co., asked Judge Fitzgerald to reconsider her decision, claiming that she erred on May 16 when she tentatively approved a plan to create a $3.5 billion asbestos trust. The trust and the plan now go before a U.S. district court judge for a second approval, which is required for all asbestos-related bankruptcy cases that create a victim’s trust fund. Under the bankruptcy plan, Pittsburgh Corning’s parents, Corning Inc. and PPG Industries Inc., may shift their liability for asbestos claims to the trust, which the companies and the insurers would fund. Corning and PPG would give the trust the right to collect on their insurance policies under the plan, which Mt. McKinley claimed would unfairly alter the policies.

Cooper-Booth Wholesale Co., which delivers to convenience stores across the Mid-Atlantic, filed for chapter 11 protection in Philadelphia earlier this week, according to Convenience Store News yesterday. The Mountville, Pa.-based company owes about $10.7 million in bank and credit card debt, in addition to about $22.8 million worth of trade debt, according to court papers. The company said that a major customer had been accused of smuggling cheap illegal cigarettes, leading authorities to obtain a seizure warrant on the company’s bank account to recover money that the customer had recently made. Bank officials who saw the seizure warrant declared Cooper-Booth to be in default of its borrowing agreements. Cooper-Booth officials have asked Bankruptcy Judge Magdeline D. Coleman for permission to spend cash that would otherwise be off-limits. The company and its affiliates "will lose significant revenue if they cannot immediately purchase supplies to fill their customer orders as needed," Cooper-Booth's attorney, Aris Karalis, stated in the court documents.