Restructuring

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In a recent Delaware Supreme Court decision, the Court held that there is no “insolvency exception” to the requirement in Section 271 of the DGCL that a transfer of all or substantially all of a corporation’s assets foreclosure transfer be approved by the corporation’s shareholders.

The Delaware Supreme Court overruled a decision by the Delaware Chancery Court that used Section 271—which requires a shareholder vote when a corporation sells all or substantially all of its assets—to interpret a Class Vote Provision in Stream TV Networks, Inc.’s charter. The Chancery Court also read a Delaware common law board-only insolvency exception into Section 271 while doing so.
Continue Reading There’s No Insolvency Exception to a Shareholder Vote Requirement to Transfer a Corporation’s Assets in Delaware

On May 22, 2020, amidst the deepest possible gloom about COVID-19’s impact on travel, the car rental giant, Hertz Global, filed for Chapter 11. According to reporting by Barrons,[1] during the reorganization, Hertz drastically cut the size of its fleet and closed locations. Like most shareholders of bankrupt companies, Hertz owners were likely to…

Belk Inc., a national privately-owned department store chain, just completed a $450 million debt restructuring in less than 24 hours! U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Marvin Isgur confirmed the plan the morning of the First Day Hearing despite the U.S. Trustee’s concerns about adequate notice. The Debtors’ prepackaged plan became effective hours after it was confirmed by the Court.

Belk argued that the plan must be confirmed quickly because the company had no cash reserves and no committed DIP financing. The Court agreed with the need for a speedy plan to protect thousands of jobs and hundreds of stores from closing. The prepackaged restructuring plan was supported by nearly all the creditors. The U.S. Trustee objected to hasty plan confirmation because the interested parties would be rushed to evaluate, respond, or object to the plan.
Continue Reading In and Out of Bankruptcy in One Day: Record-Setting Prepackaged Restructuring Plan Confirmed Within Hours of Chapter 11 Filing

The Outlook

A recent string of high-visibility hotel chapter 11 filings  has led investors and lenders to wonder what to expect for 2021. Recent filings include:

  • Martinique Hotel, a 165-key property in Brooklyn – September 2020
  • Tillary Hotel, Brooklyn, a 174-key boutique property in Brooklyn – December 2020
  • Holiday Inn Resort Orlando Suites, a 777-key property in Orlando, Florida – January 2021
  • Wardman Park Hotel, a 1,152-key property in Washington, D.C. – January 2021
  • Eagle Hospitality REIT, filed chapter 11 petitions for 18 properties, including the Queen Mary Hotel in Long Beach, California – January 2021

In New York City, there have been many hotel closures in addition to bankruptcy filings. According to the New York Post, 2020 data released by the Department of City Planning showed 146 of the city’s 705 hotels have closed —20%. The closures account for 42,030 of the city’s 128,000 hotel rooms. Analysts cited by the Post said the hotel industry won’t fully recover to pre-pandemic levels until 2025.
Continue Reading Hotels 2021: Restructurings on the Horizon?

Herrick congratulates its Restructuring & Finance Litigation Group on the success it has enjoyed over the last two years. The team, which now has 18 members and counting, has grown substantially while taking on a variety of complex litigation matters and Chapter 11 Restructurings. Below is a small sampling of our recent work.
Continue Reading Herrick’s Restructuring & Finance Litigation: 2019-2020 In Review

In In re Pace Industries, LLC, Judge Mary Walrath of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware denied a motion to dismiss a chapter 11 where the debtor circumvented a preferred stockholder’s blocking rights by filing bankruptcy petitions without the preferred stockholder’s consent.[1] Judge Walrath ruled, in a decision that has not yet been published, that she was “prepared to be the first court” to find a stockholder’s blocking rights were invalid. Judge Walrath held that use of a blocking right to preclude access to bankruptcy relief was against public policy, and that a stockholder in possession of such a right has a fiduciary duty to act in the best interests of the corporation, and not its own interests. This decision suggests that blocking rights, which are commonly used in structured finance and real estate transactions to prohibit voluntary bankruptcy filings, may not always be effective.
Continue Reading Delaware Bankruptcy Court Voids Preferred Stockholder’s Right to Block Bankruptcy Filing