Below is our initial take on recent bankruptcy-related developments:
Imerys Talc America and Cyprus Mines announced unexpectedly Monday that they wanted to halt plan confirmation proceedings.
S&K Take: It isn’t every day that you see a confirmation hearing that has been in the works since 2020 come to a screeching halt after 4 days of evidence, but that is exactly what happened in the Imerys and Cyprus Mines cases. The Imerys case dates back to 2019, with Cyprus Mines following suit in 2021. Both supplied talc to Johnson & Johnson. Imerys Talc Italy, a latecomer, joined the party on March 9, 2025. Dissenting insurers that are challenging the plan and the US Trustee have moved to dismiss the ITI case based on the premise that ITI doesn’t have significant assets in the US and the case was filed solely to satisfy the ongoing business requirement cited by Judge Lopez in his dismissal of the Red River Talc case. At the outset of the confirmation hearing, Judge Silverstein decided that she would rule on the motion to dismiss concurrently with confirmation. Other questions revolve around the prospective future claims representative of ITI. The Debtors propose that the Imerys and Cyprus Mines FCR would act as the FCR for ITI, which the Judge also reserved on. After 4 days of evidence, some cracks appeared among the plan proponents, apparently related to the foreign claims issue. The proponents informed the Judge that they would need more time, and sought to adjourn confirmation to sometime in June, with a new plan to be filed by May 23. The UST found this request “appalling,” noting that the plan provisions in question have been in place for 5 years. The dissenting insurers also requested that the Court simply deny confirmation. Judge Silverstein wanted some time to consider the issues. Clearly a lot going on under unusual circumstances. Worth keeping an eye on.
Following announcements of new and forthcoming tariffs, freight markets took multiple hits in April, with trucking and logistics companies based in Illinois, Texas, Florida, and Tennessee filing for Chapter 11.
S&K Take: Not sure if anyone has heard, but the President’s proposed tariffs have been in the news lately. Anecdotally, tariffs have had an adverse impact on a number of restructuring situations, particularly for companies with exposure to China. This adverse impact has been keenly felt in the transportation and logistics space. The article highlights 4 different industry entities that have filed in various jurisdictions. Trucking and logistics are no strangers to bankruptcy, with Yellow a name that has been discussed in these pages a number of times.
Bankrupt comic distributor Diamond failed to submit Monthly Operating Reports for January through March, triggering a motion on Monday to covert to Chapter 7 or dismiss the Chapter 11 case.
S&K Take: We haven’t checked in on this case for a bit. Diamond Comic Distributors filed in Baltimore in January with designs on selling its assets. Diamond had a stalking horse in Universal Distribution Inc. Fast forward a few months, and the Debtors have not yet named a purchaser for their assets and have failed to file MORs for 2025. This drew the ire of the United States Trustee, which has moved to convert or dismiss the case. The case seemed to be promising at the outset, so time to see if the Debtors can right the ship, or whether Diamond will suffer the same fate as a host of other recent Debtors.