Law and legal issues

A measure to overhaul Cook County’s troubled pension system advanced in the Illinois legislature, but the state Supreme Court’s recent pension ruling continues to cast a pall over the county’s efforts.

El Paso Children’s Hospital filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on May 19 after negotiations over a debt to county-owned University Medical Center fell apart, officials said.

Nearly two weeks after the Illinois Supreme Court struck down the state’s 2013 pension overhaul, state lawmakers, local government leaders, and legal experts struggle for an alternative the court would accept.

San Bernardino, Calif. is now planning to give bondholders significantly worse treatment than they have received in any municipal bankruptcy to date, Moody’s Investors Service said in a comment piece.

A former Oklahoma lawmaker is seeking to have $2 billion of budget bills from the past three years declared unconstitutional by the state Supreme Court.

Florida’s private passenger train developer has hired Miami-based contractor Archer Western to upgrade a 66-mile segment of rail infrastructure between Miami and West Palm Beach.

California charter school chain Magnolia Public Schools will rekindle its growth plans after settling a lawsuit against the Los Angeles Unified School District, which had tried to shut down Magnolia’s schools there.

Moody’s Investors Service labeled the Illinois Supreme Court’s voiding of the state’s 2013 pension system overhaul a “credit negative” for the state’s A3 bond rating.

Arguing time is the enemy, Chicago attorneys successfully argued for a fast-track hearing on a pair of lawsuits challenging pension reforms that took effect in January.

The developer of the private All Aboard Florida passenger train expects to complete the project even if it cannot benefit from $1.75 billion in tax exempt private activity bonds, according to documents filed in federal court.

San Bernardino bondholders suffered a key bankruptcy court defeat this week as the city’s bankruptcy exit plan advances.

Jefferson County, Ala., officials traveled to New York to meet the “financial community” and rating agencies on the county’s progress since existing bankruptcy.

After years of financial problems, the school district of Gary is poised to become Indiana's first local government to be taken over by an emergency financial manager.

A Nebraska bill to give bondholders priority over other creditors in the event of a municipal bankruptcy is not likely to pass in the 2015 legislative session as different interest groups negotiate its language.

Florida Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments May 7 in two appeals challenging the Florida Development Finance Corp.’s validation of $2 billion in bonds for a PACE program; one appeal says Florida’s PACE law is unconstitutional.

The Illinois Supreme Court on Friday struck down legislation that had overhauled state employee pensions, leaving the state burdened with enormous pension liabilities.

Struggling cities like Chicago need to embark on serious restructuring efforts before it’s too late and mounting retirement debt pushes them toward the fate of Detroit, said some architects of that city’s bankruptcy.

Attorneys for All Aboard Florida told a federal judge that the private passenger train owners could close on $1.75 billion in tax exempt private activity bonds around June 8.

The New Jersey Supreme Court heard testimony in a case challenging Gov. Chris Christie's decision to reduce scheduled contributions toward state employees' pensions.

Madison County, Miss., disputes its obligation to backstop some public improvement district bonds in a lawsuit with Radian Asset Assurance Inc.