• Home
  • About
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Contact
Sunday, February 17, 2019
No Result
View All Result
NEWSLETTER
WORLD FOX NEWS
14 °c
San Francisco
  • Home
  • World News
  • Politics News
  • Business News
  • Sports News
  • Entertainment News
  • Technology News
  • Science News
  • Health News
  • Daily Life
  • Uncategorized
  • Home
  • World News
  • Politics News
  • Business News
  • Sports News
  • Entertainment News
  • Technology News
  • Science News
  • Health News
  • Daily Life
  • Uncategorized
No Result
View All Result
WORLD FOX NEWS
No Result
View All Result
Home Business News

Lampert’s Deal for Sears Is Approved, but Judge Scolds Him in the Process

by admin
February 8, 2019
in Business News
0 0
0
Lampert’s Deal

Many of the creditors for Sears accused Eddie Lampert and his hedge fund of running the company into the ground, racking up losses while spinning off the company’s most valuable assets.Spencer Platt/Getty Images

0
SHARES
4
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

A federal bankruptcy judge on Thursday approved Edward S. Lampert’s plan to buy Sears, but the judge implored Mr. Lampert to make a fresh start.

Mr. Lampert, a billionaire hedge fund manager, could avoid becoming the “cartoon character” his critics have painted him as, Judge Robert Drain said — a cross between Jay Gould, the Gilded Age robber baron, and Barney Fife, the blustery gullible sheriff on the “Andy Griffith” show.

Rather, Judge Drain said, Mr. Lampert could “take action that would in fact be of great meaning” to the company’s constituents, particularly its workers.

The remarks capped an all-day hearing on the fate of Sears, which filed for bankruptcy in October.

At stake was whether Sears, a company founded shortly after the Civil War, would shut its doors or continue operating with less debt and a sound turnaround strategy.

But the hearing was also a referendum on Mr. Lampert, the company’s chief executive and largest shareholder who has controlled Sears since 2005.

Many of the company’s creditors accused Mr. Lampert and his hedge fund, ESL Investments, of running Sears into the ground, racking up losses and falling behind competitors, while spinning off the company’s most valuable assets in ways that enriched his hedge fund.

Read More: Apple’s Retail and Online Stores Chief, Angela Ahrendts, to Leave By April

Read More: Boeing is said to aim to speed 737 jet production in early summer

They questioned why Mr. Lampert, after years of failing to turn around the company, should be given the opportunity to acquire Sears out of bankruptcy. A committee of creditors wanted to liquidate the company and collect the proceeds, rather than take another risk on Mr. Lampert.

As the only bidder that planned to keep Sears operating, Mr. Lampert had positioned himself as a savior, preserving 45,000 jobs and honoring contracts with thousands of vendors.

But lawyers for the creditors committee warned that Mr. Lampert’s plan includes hundreds of millions of dollars of asset sales, which could result in substantial job cuts anyway.

In the end, Judge Drain determined that the sale of Sears to Mr. Lampert, for $5.2 billion, made sound business sense. He said the creditors failed to prove that they would recover more money by selling off the stores and other properties.

The deal is not yet complete. Sears and ESL are still working out the final details and lawyers for the companies said they were hoping to close on Friday. Sticking points remain, including which side would be responsible for $166 million owed to vendors.

The creditors committee nevertheless won an important concession in the case. It can still file lawsuits against Mr. Lampert for past deals that resulted in spinning off real estate and other valuable assets to companies that his hedge fund had stakes in. A lawyer for ESL said the claims were without merit.

David Wander, a lawyer at Davidoff Hutcher & Citron, who represents several Sears vendors in the bankruptcy, said the court imparted a clear warning to Mr. Lampert.

Read More: National Australia Bank Chiefs to Resign in Wake of Damaging Report

“The judge was warning that you claim to want to save tens of thousands of jobs, I hope that is what you do and not end up liquidating the company over the next few years,” Mr. Wander said.

Source:

Tags: business newsbusiness news articlesbusiness news for todaybusiness news googlebusiness news headlinesbusiness news nbabusiness news of todaybusiness news todayfederal bankruptcy judgeLampert’s Deallatest business newsworld business news
admin

admin

Recommended

China 'highly appreciated' outgoing US Defense Secretary James Mattis

China ‘highly appreciated’ outgoing US Defense Secretary James Mattis, official says

2 months ago
Flu

Flu Season Is Picking Up. Here’s How Many People Have Already Gotten Sick

1 month ago

Popular News

    Connect with us

    Newsletter

    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit. Aenean commodo ligula eget dolor.
    SUBSCRIBE

    Category

    • Business News
    • Daily Life
    • Entertainment News
    • Health News
    • Politics News
    • Science News
    • Sports News
    • Technology News
    • Uncategorized
    • World News

    Site Links

    • Log in
    • Entries RSS
    • Comments RSS
    • WordPress.org

    About Us

    We bring you the best Premium WordPress Themes that perfect for news, magazine, personal blog, etc. Check our landing page for details.

    • Home
    • About
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Contact

    © 2019 JNews - Premium WordPress news & magazine theme by Jegtheme.

    No Result
    View All Result
    • Home

    © 2019 JNews - Premium WordPress news & magazine theme by Jegtheme.

    Login to your account below

    Forgotten Password?

    Fill the forms bellow to register

    All fields are required. Log In

    Retrieve your password

    Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

    Log In

    Terms and Conditions - Privacy Policy