This column discusses the recent bankruptcy filings of Ritz Camera and Image and Dewey & LeBoeuf, two of the more recent high-profile entities to file for bankruptcy. The column discusses why Ritz and Dewey filed, and how they hope to use the bankruptcy process to achieve their respective goalsrestructure in the case of Ritz, and liquidate in the case of Dewey. The column also updates readers on Sbarro’s successful emergence from bankruptcy and how it used the bankruptcy process to reorganize its business and restructure its balance sheet. Finally, the column discusses the latest events in the Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC bankruptcy, including the slew of new lawsuits brought by the trustee in that case against investors in Madoff feeder funds.
Ritz Camera & Image
Ritz Camera & Image LLC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for the second time in three years on June 22, 2012, in the Delaware bankruptcy court. RCI, the largest specialty camera retailer in the United States, cited liquidity problems and the need to close unprofitable stores as the primary reasons for seeking relief under the Bankruptcy Code. RCI’s bankruptcy petition listed assets and liabilities ranging between $50 million and $100 million.
