Bankruptcy Trends

Lawyers for Dish Network Corp. Chairman Charlie Ergen and Phil Falcone squared off in front of LightSquared’s bankruptcy judge Thursday, for the first time since Mr. Falcone sued Mr. Ergen over allegedly improper purchases of LightSquared’s debt. Read the Daily Bankruptcy Review article here.

Five Mile Capital Partners LLC is accusing MSR Hotels & Resorts Inc. of using its Chapter 11 case to shield its directors from possible liability for their alleged misconduct and wants an independent trustee to take charge of the company. Read the Daily Bankruptcy Review article here.

Troubled battery maker Exide Technologies Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection early Monday as it faced $31 million in interest payments in August and the maturity of nearly $52 million in convertible notes in September. Read the Daily Bankruptcy Review article via The Wall Street Journal.

Bidder protections—a common feature in Chapter 11 bankruptcy auctions—hit their highest level in recent years, new data show.

Morgan Joseph TriArtisan LLC, an investment bank that focuses on the middle market, recently reported that the average amount of bidder protections a company offered its lead bidder last year was 4.4% of the purchase price, while average bidder protections between 2008 and 2011 hovered between 3.5% and 3.7%. (They were a low 2.6% in 2007, before the economic downturn hit.)

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. beat out Fortress Investment Group LLC for the right to lend Arcapita Bank up to $350 million that would ease the Bahraini investment firm out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Read the Daily Bankruptcy Review article here.