Law and legal issues

Despite significant obstacles, Detroit's proposed plan of adjustment to exit its Chapter 9 bankruptcy is feasible, according to Martha Kopacz, the municipal finance expert hired by the bankruptcy court to assess the plan.

Detroit’s retirees and employees endorsed the city’s proposed plan of adjustment while holders of the city’s limited tax general obligation bond holders and certificates of participation rejected it, according to the voting results released late Monday by the federal bankruptcy court.

The Amsterdam at Harborside plans to file for bankruptcy tonight or tomorrow, the conclusion of over a year of restructuring negotiations with bondholders. The plan does not forgive any debt, but does feature a senior and subordinate exchange offer.

Detroit's proposed plan of adjustment to deal with its $18 billion debt load is feasible, the municipal finance expert witness hired by the federal bankruptcy court to assess the plan believes.

A new company is aiming to keep holders of Puerto Rico bonds informed about the court proceedings there.

The Detroit Institute of Arts has raised 80% of the $100 million it pledged to contribute to Detroit's underfunded pension debt.

Based on two court cases, two former JPMorgan bankers want the SEC's pay-to-play case involving Jefferson County, Ala.'s failed sewer deals dismissed.

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer said the state will appeal a state district court order to restore $1.6 billion in school funding.

One year after Detroit filed for bankruptcy, muni experts said the city's approach should set a precedent for how not to manage a distressed workout, and that they've learned to throw out many traditional assumptions and beliefs about the treatment of bond debt in Chapter 9.

Louisiana issuers should take advantage of the SEC's initiative to self-report continuing disclosure lapses, the State Bond Commission urged Thursday.

Two former attorneys general for Utah, Mark Shurtleff and John Swallow, took bribes in criminal and civil cases, prosecutors said in charges filed in the state's 3rd District Court in Salt Lake City.

The Contra Costa County, Calif. civil grand jury found that seven of its school districts have issued capital appreciation bonds in the last ten years, and is urging them not to sell any more.

Keith Stokes, the former executive director of the Rhode Island Economic Development Corp. has withdrawn from a lawsuit against the agency's former lawyer and bond counsel over the 38 Studios fiasco.

Birmingham, Ala. city councilor Sheila Tyson, saying her constituents can't afford Jefferson County's post-bankruptcy debt, is trying to boost public support for an appeal, as hearings commence.

Reno, Nevada, conducted a special budget workshop July 15 in an attempt to plug a $2 million hole created when a Washoe County District Judge filed an injunction on June 24 preventing the city from laying off 33 firefighters

The 6th Circuit Court of Appeals set an accelerated two-week schedule to consider bond insurer Syncora Guarantee's appeal of a key decision in Detroit's bankruptcy case.

A ruling that Stockton's pension obligations can be treated the same as other contracts in municipal bankruptcy would have significant impacts on some local government bondholders in California, according to Moody's Investors Service.

Moody's Investors Service shifted its outlook on Arizona Sports and Tourism Authority's A1 rating to negative after a court overturned the car-rental tax backing $282 million of stadium bonds.

Bankruptcy court filings indicates mediation dates have been set for insurers to wrap San Bernardino's bonds to negotiate their fate in the city's Chapter 9 bankruptcy case.

Detroit's newest bondholder settlement calls for a 66% haircut for limited-tax general obligation bondholders, a deal that's severe but unsurprising given Detroit's credit, muni experts said.