BankruptcyProf Blog

Discharge in Chapter 7 Denied for Failure to Comply with Chapter 13 Confirmation Order

Standiferd v. United States Trustee, --- F.3d ----, D. Ct. No. 1:09-CV-00083-RB-RLP (10^th Cir., April, 2011)

Issue:               Is denial of the discharge appropriate based on chapter 7 debtor’s pre-conversion failure to obey the Chapter 13 confirmation order.

Holding:          Yes under these facts.   

Appeal from District Court

Ronald and Betty Standifer, filed Chapter 13, obtained confirmation of their Chapter 13 plan, and then violated the confirmation order by failing to update the trustee of their post-petition monthly income report and tax return, as required under their Chapter 13 confirmation order.  The trustee filed a motion to dismiss and the debtors voluntarily converted their case to Chapter 7.  The Chapter 7 trustee then filed a complaint to deny the discharge based on the failure to follow the confirmation order.  The bankruptcy court agreed and denied the discharge.  The District Court affirmed.  

The 10th Circuit affirmed.  Under section 727 (a)(6)(A), the court may deny discharge of a debt if the debtor willfully failed “in this case” to follow any “lawful order of the court.” The debtors argued a confirmation order is not a “lawful order of the court” and cannot require a debtor to do anything because under section 1307(a) and (b), a Chapter 13 debtor has an unwaivable right to either convert his case to a Chapter 7 at any time, or dismiss the Chapter 13 case completely.  In applying the “plain meaning” doctrine to interpret the statue, and attempting to preserve legislative intent, the court held that for the purposes of § 727 (a)(6)(A) a Chapter 13 Confirmation Order is a “lawful order of the court”.  Although the code may permit a Chapter 13 to convert or dismiss his case, and stop complying with the provisions of a confirmation order, “as long as the debtor remains under Chapter 13, however, he must comply with the terms of the bankruptcy court’s confirmation order.”

The debtors further argued that section 727 (a)(6)(A) is only applicable in a case proceeding under Chapter 7 and should not apply because the refusal to obey the confirmation order occurred before the case was converted to Chapter 7 and not “in this case” as required under the statute.”  The debtors relied on section 348(f) in their claim that it is Congress’ intent for the two phases of a bankruptcy case be treated as separate and distinct, upon conversion from Chapter 13 to Chapter 7.  The court held that at the time the discharge was denied under section 727 (a)(6)(A), the case was proceeding under Chapter 7.  Further, rather than applying section 348(f) which focuses on the composition of a converted bankruptcy estate, the court applied section 348(a) stating “the conversion of a case from one chapter to another… does not affect the date of the filing of the petition, the commencement of the case, or the order for relief.”  For purposes of section 727 (a)(6)(A) ““this case” includes proceedings occurring both before and after conversion.”

The court found the denial of discharge to be a proper remedy against this debtor for misconduct. Under the Chapter 13 plan, the debtors proposed to pay 100% of the allowed unsecured which began at upwards of $400,000.  By the time of conversion to Chapter 7, the debtors had nearly tripled their debt.  Instead of the debtor “committing the fruit of his good fortune to his creditors” the court found the debtors’ disregard toward their obligations by spending their increased income on home improvements wrongful and warranting the court’s denial of their discharge.  In this case, the court found the debtors were not entitled to the “extraordinary benefit of discharge” as it should only be available for “the honest but unfortunate debtor”.

By: Carolyn Afari 

Ethics In The Courtroom, The Female Advantage

Tuesday July 19, 2011, 5:00-6:00 PM

Location: University of West Los Angeles, School of Law
9800 S La Cienega Blvd #1200
Inglewood, CA 90301 US 

Price: $25.00 Lawyers, $10.00 Paralegals, free for law students

This program is approved for one hour bias MCLE credit.

Please email Kim Brewer for details: kbrew@uwla.edu

Great Stuff on the Dodgers - Read All About It

Dodgers' Schedules (check out the list of the top 40 creditors; why is no one talking about what will happen to poor Manny Ramirez?)

Declaration of Dodgers' Vice President Ingram in Support of Bankruptcy Petition

Dodgers File Chapter 11

U.S. Bankruptcy Court
District of Delaware (Delaware)
Bankruptcy Petition #: 11-12010-KG

Assigned to: Kevin Gross
Chapter 11 Voluntary

Date filed: 06/27/2011

Debtor
Los Angeles Dodgers LLC
Dodger Stadium
1000 Elysian Park Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Tax ID / EIN: 20-0343133
aka
LA Team Co. LLC

represented by Donald J. Bowman, Jr.
Young, Conaway, Stargatt & Taylor
1000 West Street
17th Floor
Wilmington, DE 19801
302-571-6600
Email: bankfilings@ycst.com

S. Brady
Young, Conaway, Stargatt & Taylor
The Brandywine Bldg.
1000 West Street, 17th Floor
PO Box 391
Wilmington, DE 19899-0391
usa
302-571-6600
Fax : 302-571-1253
Email: bankfilings@ycst.com 

Top 5 Bankruptcy Articles of the Past Month

Top 5 most-downloaded bankruptcy-related articles of the past month on SSRN.

1) Directors’ Fiduciary Duties in the Zone of Insolvency and Actual Insolvency: To Whom, What, and When?, Michael R. Patrone.  Analyzes the extent of corporate directors' fiduciary duty to creditors, and the incentive structures created by the various possible frameworks for fiduciary duty to creditors.

2) Are Credit Default Swaps Associated with Higher Corporate Defaults?, Stavros Peristiani & Vanessa Savino.  Found a statistically significant link between trading in credit default swaps (CDS) and corporate default frequency in the years leading up to 2008.

3) Macroeconomic Effects of Bankruptcy & Foreclosure Policies, Kurt Mitman.  Created nationwide models of household debt loads to measure the effects of varying homestead exemption rules and mortgage procedure policies to measure the macroeconomic effects of the policies, and suggested optimal policies to balance increased household welfare while minimizing the cost of mortgages and unsecured debt.

4) Recovery and Returns of Distressed Bonds in Bankruptcy, Wei Wang.  Analyzes the rate of return on distressed bonds in Chapter 11 reorganizations, and offers explanations for the generally strong returns on senior bonds and negative returns for junior bonds.

5) Game Theoretic Analysis of Negotiations under Bankruptcy, Amira Annabi, Michele Breton & Pascal Francois.  Applied a model of negotiations in court-supervised bankruptcy reorganizations as a non-cooperative game comprised of creditors, shareholders, and a trustee, and found that the length and success of the negotiations, the level of protection for creditors, and the success or failure of the firm, are affected by which of these players is given "first mover advantage" - who files the original plan of reorganization.

-CHH

Update from the State Bar Business Law Section's INSOLVENCY LAW COMMITTEE

June 22, 2011

Dear Insolvency Law Committee Constituency List members:

The following is an Ebulletin prepared on a case of interest by a member of the Insolvency Law Committee:  

A bill to again revise California Exemptions, introduced by Assembly Member Wieckowski, has recently passed the Assembly without opposition and is now in the Senate.  On June 14, 2011 the bill was favorably reported out of the Senate Judiciary Committee and is slated to be taken up by the Senate Appropriations Committee within the next few weeks.  It appears to be on a fast track.

The Bill, AB 929, results in the second substantial increase in the homestead exemption in the last year and includes major revisions to the exemptions applicable if no homestead is taken.  A copy of the bill can be found at http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/postquery?bill_number=ab_929&sess=CUR&house=B&author=wieckowski

The stated purpose of the bill is as follows: 

This bill would revise and recast those alternative exemption provisions and would, among other things, increase the exemption available for the debtor's interest in motor vehicles; jewelry, heirlooms, and works of art; and tools and other items used in the debtor's trade, business, or profession or in the trade, business, or profession of the debtor's spouse. The bill would revise the alternative exemption provisions relating to household furnishings, life insurance contracts, wrongful death and personal injury actions, unemployment compensation payments, and cemetery plots and would add to those alternative exemption provisions exemptions for workers' compensation benefits, specified aid payments and relocation benefits, and financial aid for higher education.

Existing law provides an exemption from enforcement of a money judgment for a homestead, as defined, in specified amounts.

With regard to the homestead exemption in CCP section 704.730, the bill results in the increase in the exemption amounts as follows:

	Current Law	Proposed Change
Individual	$75,000	$150,000
Family Unit	$100,000	$250,000
Over 65/Disabled/Low Income	$175,000	$350,000

The bill also increases the maximum income allowed to qualify for the low income homestead exemption for people from $15,000 to $22,000 for an individual and $20,000 to $29,000 for a married couple.

With regard to the exemptions applicable if no homestead is claimed,  CCP section 703.104(b), the bill does not increase the wildcard, per se, but does increase other provisions and also creates new exemptions such that the total amount exemptible has now increased substantially.  .  The stated purpose of these amendments is to conform the CCP Section 703.140(b) exemptions to the CCP Section 704.010 et seq. exemptions to protect those without homes in the event they file for bankruptcy protection.   While the language of the changes to the CCP Section 703.140(b) exemptions would appear to parallel the CCP Section 704.010 et seq. exemptions, the amounts are not the same.  The exemptions available under CCP Section 703.140(b) are substantially higher than those in CCP Section 704.010 et seq.

For example, a burial plot which previously was included under CCP section 703.140(b)(1) now has its own separate section, new CCP section 703.140(b)(17) and is exempt without regard to value.

A chart of certain of the increases follows:

Property Exempt	Current Law	Proposed Change
Vehicles	$3,525 (one vehicle only)	$4,800 of aggregate equity
Jewelry, heirlooms and works of art	$1,425	$5,000
Tools of the Trade	$2,200	$6,075 (and if married both spouses entitled to claim exemption)
Unmatured life insurance including annuities but not the loan value	$11,800	unlimited
Loan value of unmatured life insurance	included in $11,800 above	$9,700 (and if married both spouses entitled to claim exemption)
Personal Injury	$22,075 (for actual pecuniary loss)	unlimited

The author has been advised that the Bill has been opposed by the California Bankers Association.  The Bill will result in a reduction in the number of bankruptcy cases administered with assets.  In other words, Debtors, without homes to protect in Chapter 7 bankruptcies, will be able to protect more assets.

These materials were prepared by Elissa D. Miller of Sulmeyer Kupetz, P.C. in Los Angeles, California.

Thank you for your continued support of the Committee.

Best regards,

 Insolvency Law Committee

 

Estate of Anna Nicole Smith loses at Supreme Court

"The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a bankruptcy court incorrectly granted Anna Nicole Smith over $400 million from the estate of her oil magnate husband J. Howard Marshall. In the 5-4 decision, the nation's highest court held that the US Constitution barred a California bankruptcy court from deciding a matter outside the scope of bankruptcy law. The former Playboy Playmate married the billionaire Marshall in 1994 when she was 26 and he was 89. Marshall died in 1995 and left his entire estate to his son Pierce. Smith sued in response, but a Texas probate court granted the entire estate to Pierce Marshall despite claims by Smith that he had conspired to withhold funds promised to her by his father."

Read more here.

Toby Maguire and others sued over poker winnings

" 'Spider-Man' star Tobey Maguire and other celebrities have been caught in a web of lawsuits seeking to reclaim more than $4 million won during unlicensed poker matches at upscale Beverly Hills hotels.

The lawsuits were filed in March by a bankruptcy trustee attempting to recoup money for investors who were duped in a Ponzi scheme.

The lawsuits claim the clandestine Texas Hold `em matches were played between 2006 and 2009, with some of the money taken in the Ponzi scheme used to pay off debts incurred in the games.

Maguire is being sued for $311,000 plus interest that the lawsuit says was won by the actor in the poker matches."

Read more here.

Philadelphia Orchestra announces millions in gifts

"The Philadelphia Orchestra Association has announced an aid package worth a potential $45 million - a substantial start to its $160 million drive to help the orchestra emerge from bankruptcy and become stable.

The funding, announced Wednesday, includes only $11.2 million in outright gifts. The rest is conditional: If the orchestra can raise an additional $17.5 million by the end of 2011, that will trigger matching grants from various sources worth $16.3 million.

Total: $45 million."

Read more here.

Onetime socialite Kluge in bankruptcy protection

"Patricia Kluge, a onetime socialite who had entertained the rich and famous at her sprawling Virginia estate in the 1980s and later tried her hand at building up a national winemaking business, has filed for personal bankruptcy protection with her husband.

A lawyer for the couple, Kermit Rosenberg, disclosed details of the filing Tuesday and added: "They're getting on with their lives, trying to discharge their debts and start over."

In U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Kluge and husband William Moses listed business obligations as their chief debts. The filing estimates their assets between $1 million and $10 million, compared with $10 million to $50 million in liabilities. The couple estimated in the filing in the court in Lynchburg that they have between 50 and 99 creditors.

Kluge acquired the 23,500-square-foot Albemarle House and its 3,000 acres in rural Virginia from her 1990 divorce from billionaire media mogul John W. Kluge, who died in September. It was designed after an 18th-century English country manor with multilevel gardens, fountains, a swimming pool and rustic guest cabin."

Read more here.

Bankruptcy Court Questions Naiveté of Debtor – When the Debtor’s Spouse is a Paralegal

Allegations in credit card company’s complaint, that Chapter 7 debtor ran up more than $3,700 in charges against her account in space of roughly one month, at time when debtor’s total unsecured credit card debt of more than $88,000 was in excess of her ability to pay it and when debtor, through her paralegal spouse, had access to legal advice, sufficiently pled facts supporting an inference of fraudulent intent to state plausible claim to except credit card debt from discharge on “false pretenses, false representation, or actual fraud” theory, and to preclude dismissal of complaint as failing to state cause of action. In re Vanarthos 445 B.R. 257 (Bkrtcy.S.D.N.Y.,2011).

Bill Statsky
www.statsky.blogspot.com

Tuscaloosa Bankruptcy Attorney Charged with Bankruptcy Fraud

"Federal prosecutors today charged a Tuscaloosa attorney with bankruptcy fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance and FBI Special Agent in Charge Patrick Maley.

The one-count information filed in U.S. District Court charges DONALD DIONNE, 60, with making a false oath or account in relation to a bankruptcy case.

'By including information which he knew was false, Mr. Dionne attempted to subvert the bankruptcy court’s rules regarding the judge and division to which his client’s cases were assigned,” Vance said. “Regardless of his motivation, as an attorney and officer of the court, Mr. Dionne had a duty to put accurate and correct information on the bankruptcy petitions he filed.'

The United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Alabama is divided into four divisions: Northern, Southern, Eastern, and Western. The local rules of the bankruptcy court require that an individual debtor’s bankruptcy case be assigned to the division that corresponds with the debtor’s residence, principal place of business, or the location of the assets for the person or entity filing bankruptcy for 180 days before the date of the bankruptcy filing."

Read more here.

Trustee searching for felon's missing artwork

"A bankruptcy trustee is searching for 80 pieces of artwork once owned by a Dickson retirement plan manager who was sent to jail for embezzlement in the hopes of recovering money for his creditors.

Former 1Point Solutions CEO Barry Stokes died in federal prison last year after he was convicted of bilking $19 million from his clients' retirement funds and health care spending accounts. Prior to his arrest, Stokes was also collector of Japanese woodblock prints and about 2,000 pieces of the collection have been recovered and sold for about $1 million to pay off creditors."

Read more here.

DC Convention Materials Now Available for Purchase

From: NACBANotices@nacba.org [mailto:NACBANotices@nacba.org]
Sent: Thursday, June 16, 2011 12:37 PM
Subject: DC Convention Materials Now Available for Purchase

Greetings.

I am writing to let you know that the materials from our 19th Annual
Convention, held April 15-17, 2011, in Washington, DC, are now available for
purchase.

You have several purchasing options. Please note that there are two
different vendors, depending on which products/packages you are purchasing.

* Audio recordings, both in single sessions or all sessions bundled
together;

* Video recordings for selected sessions that include the written
materials for that session;

* A flash drive containing all of the written materials from the
Convention, along with additional materials submitted by the speakers and
available only on the flash drive;

* The two-volume set of written materials available to attendees at
the Convention; and

* The two-volume set of written materials available to attendees at
the Convention PLUS the flash drive containing all of the written materials
from the Convention and additional materials submitted by the speakers
available only on the flash drive....

Barbara Andelman, Executive Director

216.491.6770 <mailto:barbara.andelman@nacba.org> barbara.andelman@nacba.org

Law Committee -- Business Law Section of the State Bar of California -- Bankruptcy e-Bulletin

June 16, 2011

Dear Insolvency Law Committee Constituency List members:

The following is an Ebulletin prepared on a case of interest by members of
the Insolvency Law Committee constituency list:

On April 26, 2011, the Supreme Court approved an Amendment to Rule 2019 of
the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure ("FRBP") with an effective date of
December 1, 2011.

RATIONALE FOR AMENDMENT

According to the Advisory Committee Reports, the purpose for the amendment
to Rule 2019 was to "expand disclosure requirements to facilitate openness
and transparency by revealing potentially divergent economic interest within
groups of creditors or equity security holders and on the putative
representatives of other stakeholders." The amendment requires committees,
groups or entities that consist of or represent creditors or equity security
holders who are acting in concert to identify "their disposable economic
interests" as it relates to the debtor.

PRIMARY CHANGES TO RULE 2019

The amended rule begins with a new definition section in subparagraph (a).
Therein the term "disclosable economic interest" is now defined in Rule
2019(a)(1) to be more expansive than only a claim or interest.

The next added definition is "represent" or "represents" which is explained
to mean the taking of a position before the court or to solicit votes
regarding the confirmation of a plan on behalf of another. According to the
Advisory Committee, these terms require active participation in the case.

Focusing on disclosures, Rule 2019(b)(1) now requires a verified statement
by every group or committee that consists of or represents, and every entity
that represents, multiple creditors or equity security interests, that are
(A) acting in concert to advance their common interests and (B) not composed
entirely of affiliates or insiders of one another. This change clarifies
that groups comprised entirely of affiliates or insiders of one another are
exempt from the rule.

Also, specifically excluded from the disclosure requirements explained in
subpart (b)(2) are: (a) an indenture Trustee; (b) an agent for one or more
other entities under an agreement for the extension of credit; (c) a class
action representative; or (d) a governmental unit that is not a person.

The reason for the exclusion of these entities is that their representation
occurs under formal legal arrangements of trust or contract law that
precludes them from acting on the basis of conflicting economic interests.

Rule 2019(c) sets forth the information required by a verified statement.

The amended rule (i) deleted the requirement to disclose the amount paid to
acquire the disclosable economic interest as contained in prior Rule
2019(a)(4) and (ii) modified the acquisition date disclosure provision by
requiring disclosure only by quarter and year.

Concerning disclosure of the price paid, the Advisory Committee noted input
received from interested parties that pricing information was highly guarded
by distress-debt purchasers who feared that its disclosure could give
industry participants unfair insight into a competitor's trading strategies.

As to the acquisition date disclosure provision, it was modified to require
disclosure only by quarter and year. This is a departure from the prior
rule 2019(a)(2) which required disclosing the amounts paid and time of the
acquisition unless it was acquired more than one year prior to the filing.

WHAT THE AMENDED RULE DOES NOT REQUIRE

Still missing from Rule 2019 is its application to Chapter 7 cases. While
the disclosure requirements are understandable as they relate to the Chapter
11 and Chapter 9 confirmation process, is the importance of disclosure any
less critical in the administration of a complex Chapter 7 case? Recent
statistics on bankruptcy filing trends confirm that scheduled asset values
are far greater collectively in Chapter 7 business filings than there were
in Chapter 11 business filings, even in the years of the largest Chapter 11
reorganization cases, including years in which General Motors and Lehman
Brothers filed for bankruptcy relief.

These materials were prepared by Gary B. Rudolph and James P. Hill of the
Sullivan Hill Lewin Rez & Engel law firm in San Diego, California.

Thank you for your continued support of the Committee.

Best regards,

Insolvency Law Committee

The Insolvency Law Committee of the Business Law Section of the California
State Bar provides a forum for interested bankruptcy practitioners to act
for the benefit of all lawyers in the areas of legislation, education and
promoting efficiency of practice. For more information about the Business
Law Standing Committees, please see the standing
<http://businesslaw.calbar.ca.gov/StandingCommittees.aspx> committees web
page

OCBF Brown Bag Program

Individual Chapter 11s, Part I: GETTING THE CASE OFF THE GROUND

Speakers:
Hon. Scott C. Clarkson -- United States Bankruptcy Judge, Central District of California
Michael Hauser -- Staff Attorney for the United States Trustee
Michael G. Spector -- Law Offices of Michael G. Spector, Santa Ana, CA

Next Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Registration 11:30 a.m. -- Program Commences at 12:00 p.m. SHARP

United States Bankruptcy Court
411 W. 4th Street, Santa Ana, Courtroom 5C

Check-in for the brown bag is located just past the security guards
on the first floor of the courthouse.

Despite the name "Brown Bag", no food or beverages are allowed in the
Courtroom.

OCBF Members and Government Employees $10
Non-Members $25
No-shows and cancellations received the day of the event will be billed
automatically.

Register: Visit OCBF.org

Bankruptcy court rules against gay-marriage ban

"The country’s largest consumer bankruptcy court has sided with a gay couple seeking to file a joint bankruptcy petition, taking the extraordinary step of deciding the federal law prohibiting same-sex marriages is unconstitutional.

The Los Angeles-based federal court made the ruling Monday in the case of Gene Balas and Carlos Morales, who wed during the 2008 window when same-sex marriage was briefly legal in California. “It is hurtful to hear my own government say that my marriage is not valid for purposes of federal law,” Balas said in a court filing.

Balas said he was laid off from his $200,000-a-year job in the financial industry in March 2009. The couple said they share all income and expenses.

“All the property that either of us owns is community property, and all of our debts are community debts,” said Morales, who has spent most of the relationship unemployed. “We have no prenuptial agreement, postnuptial agreement or transmutation agreement.”

The ruling written by U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Thomas Donovan wasn’t the first blow to the Defense of Marriage Act in federal court. That came last year when a federal judge in Boston declared the law an unconstitutional violation of equal protection guarantees. Two other bankruptcy courts have also rejected administration attempts to dismiss joint filings made by same-sex couples, but neither of those rulings addressed the constitutionality of the act."

Read more here.

CDCB Rules that DOMA Is Not "Cause" for Dismissal of Married Gay Couple's Joint Petition

In a landmark decision, written by Judge Thomas Donovan and signed by 19 other members of the court, the Central District of California Bankruptcy Court has ruled that same-sex partners who are legally married in California may file a joint bankruptcy petition, despite Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act, which restricts the meaning of "marriage" in any federal law to "only a legal union between one man and one woman." 

The opinion in In re Balas & Morales reasoned that recent 9th Circuit jurisprudence and the recent Holder memo describing the President's stance on the constitutionality of DOMA suggests that legislation which disadvantages people on the basis of their sexual orientation must be subjected to heightened judicial scrutiny.  Applying this scrutiny, the court ruled that DOMA, as applied to invalidate the joint petition of a legally married gay couple in California, unconstitutionally violates the equal protection clause of the 5th and 14th Amendments. 

Read the opinion here.

-CHH

Fed bankruptcy court may lose Will County courtroom space

"JOLIET — A federal bankruptcy judge soon could be looking for new chambers as Will County eyes his courtroom. The space where the U.S. Bankruptcy Court holds its calls in Joliet is actually owned by Will County. It’s found on the second floor of the county’s annex building at 57 N. Ottawa St.A three-year extension on its lease will end soon, and Will County Judge Gerald Kinney said he needs the courtroom to accommodate his own overcrowded court system.“At this point, I have little choice,” Kinney told Will County board members last week. Kenneth Gardner, clerk of the bankruptcy court in Illinois’ northern district, said the courtroom has been there since the 1990s, before the county bought the building. He said 7,548 cases were filed there last year from Grundy, Kendall, LaSalle and Will counties. It was the court’s busiest year since 2005. The federal court pays $1,159 a month to use the courtroom once a week, Gardner said. Workers compensation cases are handled there the other days of the week. Though Kinney told county board members the bankruptcy court’s cases could wind up in Chicago, Gardner said it would seek a new courtroom in the area to keep them local."

Read more here.

Perkins & Marie Callender's Files for Chapter 11 Protection

"Perkins & Marie Callender's Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Monday after securing key creditors' support for a plan to slash the company's $440 million debt load.

Early papers filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del., put holders of $190 million worth of senior notes at the top of the list of unsecured creditors. Existing lenders led by a division of Wells Fargo & Co., owed nearly $10.1 million, have offered up to $21 million worth of bankruptcy financing, court papers say.

The company reported assets of $290 million in its bankruptcy petition."

Read more here.