Front Page
Aug. 6, 2002
Five Lawyers From Luce Forward Work to Reorganize Burger Kings
Five lawyers from Luce, Forward, Hamilton & Scripps helped seven entities that owned and operated 130 Burger King franchises reorganize more than $100 million of debt.
Five lawyers from Luce, Forward, Hamilton & Scripps helped seven entities that owned and operated 130 Burger King franchises reorganize more than $100 million of debt.
The attorneys were Margaret Mann, Mikel Bistrow, Christine Baur, Ed Mendoza and Don Ennis. Mann, a San Diego partner who served as lead counsel, was traveling and unavailable for comment at press time.
The Chapter 11 case was filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Los Angeles July 20, 2001. The reorganization plan was confirmed June 27.
"The filed plan had the support of all the major constituents," says Jeffrey Pomerantz, attorney for the unsecured creditors committee.
The debtors owed the unsecured creditors between $15 million and $30 million, according to Pomerantz, a Los Angeles partner at Pachulski Stang Ziehl Young & Jones. He anticipates that the unsecured creditors will receive at least 20 cents on the dollar.
The debtors are Cimm's Inc., L&R Properties, Virginia Cimm's Inc., Oahu Restaurants Inc., Bari Management Inc., Hawaii Cimm's Inc., and Vermont Management Inc.
The plan provides for the debtors to continue operating Burger King fast-food restaurants in Texas and California, to sell restaurants in Hawaii and Washington, and to transfer the Virginia restaurants back to Burger King.
Marc Beilinson, a Los Angeles partner at Pachulski Stang, also represented the unsecured creditors committee.
David Gould of McDermott, Will & Emery represented principal Lawrence Cimmarusti, while Lewis Landau of the Law Offices of Lewis Landau served as counsel to principal Ralph Cimmarusti.
Paul Battista of Genovese Joblove & Battista represented Franchise Acceptance Corp. Limited and Burger King Corp.
Also, Gregory Bray of Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy served as counsel to secured creditor JP Morgan Chase Bank, and John Graham of Jeffer, Mangels, Butler & Marmaro represented secured creditor Bay View Bank.
Staff Writer
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