Law and legal issues

An Alabama federal judge's refusal to dismiss an appeal of Jefferson County's bankruptcy plan is credit negative for sewer warrant holders, Moody's said Oct. 6.

Bond insurer Syncora Guarantee Inc.'s settlement with Detroit was the focus of much of the testimony Friday during the federal trial on the city's bankruptcy exit plan.

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott announced settlement of an investigation of anticompetitive activities involving underwriting fees paid by municipal utility districts in the Houston area.

Fitch plans to investigate how the comptroller for Florida State University's Boosters allegedly stole as much as $700,000.

The bankruptcy of the private operator who runs the Indiana Toll Road is not expected to affect the triple-A rated state’s credit, Moody's Investors Service said Friday.

San Bernardino experienced another setback in its bankruptcy when the police union's president announced that a breakdown has occurred in a tentative agreement with the city.

Fitch Ratings and Standard & Poor's say the recent ruling in Stockton, Calif.'s bankruptcy case does not have significant credit implications for Stockton and other distressed municipalities.

A judge's decision that bankrupt California local governments can impair pension obligations could open the door for pension negotiations but won't cause a rush to file for Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection, municipal bankruptcy attorneys say.

South Florida environmentalists filed suit Thursday to stop dredging of the channel to ready the PortMiami for opening of the expanded Panama Canal.

Fluvanna County, Va.'s three-year legal tussle with Davenport & Co., has come to a close after the county's Board of Supervisors accepted an offer from the firm to drop its pursuit of $1.6 million in legal fees in exchange for an end to the suit and a public statement by the board retracting the claims it made against Davenport.

Detroit emergency manager Kevyn Orr on Wednesday offered a glimpse into the city's high-stakes negotiations — and subsequent settlements — with bondholders during the course of its historic bankruptcy.

The judge in the Stockton, Calif. bankruptcy case has ruled that a city in Chapter 9 bankruptcy has the power to adjust California Public Employees' Retirement System pensions.

Hawaii judge rules that Hawaii House of Representatives has jurisdiction over residency of legislators, not court, in ruling dismissing lawsuit challenging Hawaii Rep. Calvin Say's residency.

A lease the Pennsylvania government signed for the Harrisburg Redevelopment Authority's 12-story Verizon Tower doesn't generate the revenue needed to prevent a default by the city on its debt-service guarantee for the project, said Moody's.

The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia has dismissed a challenge to the investment advisers pay-to-play rule, ruling that it lacks jurisdiction to hear the case.

Detroit's attorneys called a $1.5 billion 2005 certificates of participation financing an "insider deal" that benefited banks and helped doom the struggling city during a federal hearing on the disputed debt issuance.

U.S. District Judge Sharon Blackburn ruled Tuesday that appeals in Jefferson County, Ala.'s bankruptcy case will go forward.

A post-bankrupt Detroit will not only be a "normal borrower" within a year, but will be stronger than many credits in the muni market, the city's investment banker testified in federal court Tuesday.

A Lackawanna County Court ruled that Scranton, Pa., overstepped in assessing a commuter tax on nonresidents.

A Brooklyn judge may have brought light to the end of the tunnel for financially struggling SUNY Downstate with a ruling that could facilitate the already agreed transfer of Long Island College Hospital to New York University.