Baker Botts partner Bill Kroger knows music and Texas legal history. He needs both as he faces some monumental challenges as the new president of the Houston Bar Association. Exactly 150 years ago, Baker Botts co-founder Peter Gray was the bar’s first president. His big issue in 1870: a healthcare crisis known as the Yellow Fever, which killed thousands of people, bankrupted Texas businesses and led to an armed quarantine.
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‘There is a Tsunami Coming’
More Texas businesses are filing for bankruptcy this year than during the Great Recession or anytime in the past two decades, and legal experts say the wave of insolvencies and restructurings is still far from breaking or hitting their peak. Houston has emerged as the preferred venue for large, complex restructurings for companies such as J.C. Penney and Neiman Marcus, though Dallas has a new bankruptcy judge on deck. The Texas Lawbook examines the trends and provides analysis from the top bankruptcy experts.
DBJ: Dallas Firm Closes $969M Fund
Baker Botts represented Energy Spectrum Partners in its VIII fund, which will continue to invest primarily in midstream assets in the energy sector.
DBJ: As Dealmaking Stalls, Distress Could Create Opportunities for the Bold in DFW PE
The Dallas Business Journal’s Rebecca Ayers talked with Foley partner Chris Converse and other dealmakers about the challenges and opportunities facing private equity.
J.C. Penney Files For Chapter 11
Ending weeks, even months, of speculation, Texas-based retailer J.C. Penney filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection late Friday in the Southern District of Texas. Natalie Posgate reports.
GC Brandy Treadway Leads J.C. Penney into Chapter 11
On Page 15 of J.C. Penney Company’s bankruptcy filing Friday late afternoon, there is the signature of the corporation’s general counsel and corporate secretary, Brandy Treadway. “Attached hereto is a true, complete, and correct copy of the resolutions of the Board of Directors of the Company.” Here is a profile of J.C. Penney’s GC, who will play a critical role in the retailer’s restructuring.
Colorado E&P Company Files for Chapter 11 in Houston
Colorado-based Ultra Petroleum is one of the latest energy companies to file for bankruptcy amid the COVID-19 and oil pricing crises. The restructuring is another example of Kirkland and Jackson Walker teaming up. Natalie Posgate has the details.
Updated: Exxon’s $77M SDTX Environmental Trial Goes Virtual
Exxon Mobil and the federal government were in the midst of a $77 million bench trial in Houston when the proceedings were interrupted by COVID-19. Instead of waiting to return to court, the parties chose to finish out the trial electronically. And while there has been no decision on the environmental dispute involved, there has been a ruling on the electronic bench-trial experience. Natalie Posgate has the verdict.
SCOTX Returns “Fuzzy Animal” to 2nd COA
The City of Fort Worth’s decades-old struggle with the “fuzzy animal” exception to state gaming laws entered a new phase Friday when a unanimous Texas Supreme Court sent its case back to the Second Court of Appeals. The state’s highest court asked the lower court to make the constitutionality of Fort Worth game rooms less…well, fuzzy. Janet Elliott explains.
Susman Moved to Houston Rehab Facility
According to his brother, famed Houston trial lawyer Steve Susman is showing new signs of progress after a freak bicycle accident left him comatose for 11 days. Terry Carter has an update and background on the accident.