Law and legal issues

The San Bernardino, Calif. bankruptcy differs from other municipal bankruptcies because the city's leaders are unable to strike deals with creditors, Ambac Assurance Corp.’s attorney said

The Atlantic City, N.J. emergency manager’s suggestions for tackling the city's fiscal crisis are a credit negative as they open the door to default, according to Moody's Investors Service.

Franklin Templeton Investments filed its first brief on March 25 appealing the ruling that allowed Stockton to exit bankruptcy.

A federal appeals court will hear oral arguments May 15 in the case of three convicted bid riggers seeking to have their convictions overturned.

Atlantic City Emergency Manager Kevin Lavin released a 60-day interim report Tuesday that does not mention bankruptcy but suggested a bond restructuring as one way to help the city's finances.

The Third District Court of Appeal in Florida has ruled that property taxes cannot be assessed against privatized military housing at the Key West Naval Air Station.

Rhode Island’s $621 million sale of tobacco settlement asset-backed bonds two months after a state judge cleared the deal was a huge boost for the Ocean State, said an attorney involved with the case.

Former Miami budget director Michael Boudreaux wants the U.S. Supreme Court to grant him immunity from a Securities and Exchange Commission lawsuit that has attracted a lot of attention from issuer officials and attorneys.

Michigan senators approved a bill giving investors in Detroit’s income tax-backed bonds both a statutory lien and an intercept aimed at snagging at least one investment-grade rating on the city’s first post-bankruptcy bond deal set for the spring.

Rhode Island and unions challenging its landmark 2011 pension benefit are working to settle the case and avoid a jury trial.

Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane expects to finish her investigation of the Harrisburg incinerator bond financing fiasco soon, she told lawmakers.

Indian River County, Fla., plans to file a federal lawsuit challenging the U.S. Department of Transportation's private activity bond allocation for the All Aboard Florida passenger train project.

California's Foothill/Eastern Transportation Corridor Agency failed again to get approvals from a water board needed to move ahead on a five-mile extension of one of its toll roads.

The Georgia Supreme Court affirmed the validation of $200 million in bonds for the Atlanta Falcons' new stadium on Monday.

Attorneys in the pay-to-play case involving Jefferson County, Ala.’s sewer deals told a federal judge in recent filings that motions for summary judgment should not be granted.

Investors in a federal class action lawsuit stemming from the failure of a bond-financed Missouri sucralose plant stand to recoup about 86% of the par value of their losses.

Hitting Wayne County, Mich. with its third downgrade in four weeks, Fitch Ratings warned that $200 million of bonds issued for a new downtown Detroit jail could be particularly vulnerable to default.

The written opinion issued by U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Klein in Stockton’s bankruptcy conveys a mixed message for investors, according to a Moody's Investors Service report.

The California Supreme Court will review appellate court ruling that San Diego Association of Government's 40-year transportation did not meet environmental laws.

This week's oral arguments at the Illinois Supreme Court about the constitutionality of the state's pension overhaul legislation left few hints about how the judges will rule.