Practices
Successful Retail Liquidation: Plan Confirmed in Filene's Basement Chapter 11 Case
On January 26, 2010, the Honorable Mary F. Walrath of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware entered an order confirming the liquidating plan of FB Liquidating Estate (f/k/a Filene's Basement). Filene's Basement, an iconic name in value-price fashion retail with multiple stores in the eastern and midwestern United States, filed for bankruptcy in May 2009. A going-concern sale of substantially all of the debtors' assets was approved in June 2009, which resulted in significant proceeds for the estate, continuation of the Filene's Basement business and name under new ownership, and the preservation of the jobs of many of the company's nearly 2000 employees. The success of the sale, combined with settlements with key constituencies, allowed prompt proposal of the liquidating plan. Creditors voted overwhelmingly to support the plan, and the January 26 confirmation sets the stage for a quick and substantial return to unsecured creditors, who can expect recovery on their claims in excess of 75%.