Amazon’s announced acquisition of Whole Foods for $13.7 billion 1 is yet another sign of continuing competitive challenges faced by traditional supermarket chains. The Whole Foods acquisition brings Amazon a 468-store footprint, a fresh foods supply chain, new sourcing capabilities, and a strong...

It’s not news that traditional retail has been undergoing a sea change for quite some time, as evidenced by the growing number of big names that have been forced to downsize or close altogether in the past few years. Rue21 and Payless Shoe Store have each closed 400 stores so far this year...

Bankruptcy filings by retailers in the first half of 2017 were on a record-setting pace, with 15 Chapter 11 filings in just the first six months of the year ( Figure 1 ). This exceeds the number of retailers that have filed for bankruptcy in any full year since 2009, and there is a significant...

With the number of corporate bankruptcy filings in the retail industry nearly doubling in 2016 and continuing to climb in 2017, 1 retailers and their legal and financial professionals are faced with innumerable challenges in navigating the corporate bankruptcy process successfully in a streamlined...

Lenders and borrowers alike benefit from reduced risk in loan transactions. One way lenders can reduce their risk is by lending to bankruptcy remote special purpose entities (SPEs), which are typically limited liability companies (LLCs) structured to limit their right to file bankruptcy. The...

The Canadian judiciary has occasionally been criticized by the litigation bar for not taking advantage of the summary judgment procedures set out in the Court Rules. Indeed, it seems that a summary judgment is granted only in exceptional circumstances, and a judge may be more likely to “kick the...

J ane H. Downey is a partner with Moore Taylor in West Columbia, South Carolina. She is certified by the South Carolina Supreme Court as a specialist in bankruptcy and debtor/creditor law and also as a mediator and arbitrator. In addition, the American Board of Certification has certified her as a...

Douglas K. Brown , director of development for ASTI Environmental in Brighton, Michigan, recently received the Robert Sieghart Award for Enthusiasm for the Economic Development Profession during the Michigan Economic Developers Association Annual Conference. The award recognizes individuals who...

Arizona Matthew Gilbreath, Alliance Bank of Arizona Atlanta Elissa Barratt, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern District of Georgia Matthew R. Dossey, Aurora Management Partners Inc. Travis R. Hunt, Citizens Commercial Banking John Karg, Hagen Realty Group Kenneth Saffold, Tennenbaum Capital Partners...

Chaos is described as a state of complete disorder and confusion. After 28 years in the turnaround and restructuring business, one develops a taste for it. I am reflecting on what it is that distinguishes the subject matter of the turnaround industry from the healthy business world. At the risk of...