Law and legal issues

Puerto Rico said recently that there is no reason to believe that its debt is unconstitutional, but that this issue could arise in legal disputes if there is no “consensual restructuring” of the debt.

The Oregon Supreme Court will hear a case challenging the legality of a bond-financed hotel near the Oregon Convention Center, a project that has been tied up in legal difficulty for years.

The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on Dec. 1 to explore Puerto Rico’s fiscal problems and the potential options that are available to help the island, panel chair Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, announced Thursday

A second environmental group is suing Florida over spending decisions related to a 2014 constitutional amendment earmarking funds for conservation purposes.

A lengthy battle between a bond trustee and bankrupt Chicago-area hockey arena operator Leafs Hockey Club over $20 million of unrated bonds is nearing an end.

The AAA rating recently assigned to San Diego Unified School District's upcoming general obligation bond issuance could set a precedent for other school district ratings throughout California, according to Fitch Ratings in a report.

Investors holding about $27 million of bonds issued for a failed sucralose plant in Moberly, Missouri have reached settlements with the financial firms they sued in state court, weeks after a federal class-action case was settled.

The San Bernardino, Calif. redevelopment successor agency's plan to refund roughly $68 million in tax increment bonds should find an eager market despite the parent city's bankruptcy, says an investment advisor.

Standard & Poor's has withdrawn its D rating on a Glendale, Ariz., plant designed to convert trash into energy after the project defaulted on its October bond payment.

Florida's second-most populous county and one of its tiniest cities bucked the official state position on carbon emissions by joining a coalition supporting the federal government's Clean Power Plan.

State Rep. Karen MacBeth wants the Rhode Island State Police and Attorney General to investigate Michael Corso's activities related to the 38 Studios bond fiasco.

Chicago squares off in the Illinois Supreme Court Nov. 17 with unions and pension fund members challenging the overhaul of its municipal and laborers' pension funds.

Agreements settling construction disputes over new nuclear units in Georgia and South Carolina are positive credit factors for the public and private owners of the projects, according to Moody's Investors Service.

The former CEO of Queens Library in New York City sued the library in federal court, saying it fired him for cause to deny him more than $2 million in severance.

In striking down a class-action union appeal Nov. 2, the Georgia Supreme Court ruled that Atlanta did not violate the state's constitution when the City Council reformed pension benefits in 2011.

A forensic inquiry into Jacksonville, Fla.’s Police and Fire Pension Fund says poor management and the lack of transparency by the fund’s board are among reasons for at least $370 million in losses.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Alan C. Stout scheduled a hearing for Dec. 9 to decide if Hillview, Ky. is qualified to continue through the bankruptcy process.

Puerto Rico could benefit from a control board similar to what Congress implemented for Washington, D.C., said former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.

The Seminole Tribe sued the state of Florida just days before expiration of an exclusive agreement allowing the tribe to offer lucrative card games at its casinos.

The Chicago Park District’s AA-plus Standard & Poor's rating won’t change solely because of a new legal challenge launched against its pension reforms.