Chapter 11 filings are picking up…

On the Reorg Americas team, we’ve seen a pickup in chapter 11 filings in the past few weeks. Notable new filers include mall REIT Washington Prime and SoftBank-backed tech-oriented construction company Katerra. Another new filer – Krygyz gold miner Kumptor – is bringing fascinating questions of international comity and the reach of bankruptcy court powers to Judge Judge Lisa G. Beckerman in New York.

Reorg continues its expansion into municipals coverage, and there we’ve seen some recent chapter 9 filings from Western Community Energy and the Texas Student Housing Authority. Meanwhile the endgame for Puerto Rico’s long-running Title III proceedings is coming into view, with battle lines being drawn for a confirmation hearing, the timing of which is not pinned down but looks to be late this year.

We’re also paying close attention to litigation challenges to Biden administration initiatives. Reorg readers heard first about a Florida federal judge’s ruling against the CDC’s Covid-oriented conditional sailing order that was set to govern cruising from U.S. ports this summer and a Louisiana federal judge’s injunction against a “pause” on federal oil and gas leases on federal land. Sign up for weekly updates here.