Recent Bankruptcies
Circuit city
On Nov. 10, just a week after electronics retailer Circuit City announced that it would shutter 155 of its more than 700 stores, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. On Jan. 16 2009, Circuit City said it had failed to find a buyer and would liquidate its holdings.
Hurt by slumping ad sales, Minnesota's largest newspaper, the Star Tribune announced Jan. 15 that it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The news came less than two years after it was bought by a private equity group
The owner of the Black Angus Steakhouse chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Jan. 15 - the latest in a string of bankruptcy filings by sit-down restaurants hit hard by the deepening recession.
Technology giant Nortel Networks announced Jan. 14 that it filed for bankruptcy protection as the company struggles with a sharp decline in orders from phone company clients. It's the first major technology bankruptcy filing since the start of the current global economic crisis.
Tennessee-based Goody's, which just emerged from bankruptcy protection in October, announced Jan. 14 that it was again filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The company also said that it would liquidate its remaining 282 stores.
Retailer Gottschalks announced Jan. 14 that it had put itself up for sale and filed to reorganize in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The company operates 58 department stores and three specialty clothing stores in California, Washington, Alaska, Oregon, Nevada and Idaho.
Less than a week after warning that bankruptcy was an option, the U.S. arm of chemical giant LyondellBasell Industries has filed for Chapter 11 as a global economic slump continues to weaken demand for its products, which are used in everything from cars to detergent
Classic china and crystal maker Waterford Wedgwood becomes the latest well-known brand to file for bankruptcy after attempts to restructure the company or find a buyer failed.
On Dec. 22, Flying J, a privately held oil producer, refiner and pipeline operator, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, citing weak oil prices and turmoil in the credit markets.
Camera and imaging equipment maker Polaroid Corp. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Dec. 18. The company says the filing and an ongoing restructuring plan are due largely to a fraud investigation at its parent company, Petters Group Worldwid
KB Toys filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in early December, outlining plans to shut down its nearly 400 locations and wind down its wholesale division.
Car rental company Advantage is one the latest U.S. firms to file for bankruptcy as cash-strapped consumers do less traveling during a slumping economy. When it made the announcement on Dec. 8, the company also said that it would close about 40 percent of its U.S. retail locations.
Tribune Co., the media conglomerate that owns the Chicago Tribune and the Los Angeles Times as well as the Chicago Cubs and Wrigley Field, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Dec. 8.
For the second time in 2 years gym operator Bally Total Fitness has filed for bankruptcy protection. The company, which operates nearly 350 facilities nationwide, made the latest announcement Dec. 3.
U.S. meat makers, especially Pilgrim's Pride, are hurting as their profits shrink in the wake of volatile feed prices. On Dec. 1, Pilgrim's Pride, the largest U.S. chicken producer, also weighed down by a sagging debt load, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
Home electronics retailer Tweeter filed for Chapter 11 in 2007 but in early December, the company coverted its case to a Chapter 7 filing and began to liquidate its stores.
On Dec. 1, Hawaiian Telcom Communications Inc., the largest telephone company on the Hawaiian islands, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The company cited ncreased competition, economic volatility and its failure to meet capital expenditure needs.
Department store Boscov's filed for Chapter 11 protection in August. On Nov. 21, a judge approved the sale of the company to two former executives.
Home electronics retailer Tweeter filed for Chapter 11 in 2007 but in early December, the company coverted its case to a Chapter 7 filing and began to liquidate its stores.
On Nov. 21, Boca Raton-based DayJet Corp., a small startup airline that intended to shuttle busy business travelers between regional airports grounded its planes and filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
Following $2.9 million in losses this year in the New England market, Mattress Discounters said in September that it would close 48 stores there. The discount retailer also filed for Chapter 11 protection.
Ailing department store chain Mervyn's announced in mid-October that it would liquidate its remaining 149 stores. Mervyns filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in July after vendors held up shipments and lenders withheld financing when the shop fell silent about its finance
In July, Metromedia Restaurant Group, the parent company of Bennigan's and Steak & Ale restaurant chains, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection and closed 150 of it's company-owned stores.
After filing for bankruptcy in July, Steve & Barry's was bought by Bay Harbour Management for $168 million, which specializes in turning around distressed and bankrupt properties. On Nov. 20, the new owners said that they would liquidate the company's remaining 173 stores.
The Office of Thrift Supervision shut down IndyMac Bank on July 11 after it succumbed to the pressures of tighter credit, tumbling home prices and rising foreclosures. Control of its assets were transferred to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. On Aug. 1, IndyMac filed for bankruptcy protection.
Storied Wall Street investment bank Lehman Brothers filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in September after the U.S. government refused to rescue it. It was the largest bankruptcy filing in U.S. history.
Also in September, Washington Mutual decided to file for bankruptcy protection after selling its banking operations to JPMorgan Chase. It was the biggest bank failure in U.S. history.
Home goods retailer Linens 'n Things filed for bankruptcy protection in May, and several months after failing to find a buyer the company began a liquidation sale.
Skybus Airlines -- a discount airline known for $10 fares and a la carte extras -- abruptly shut down April 5 following a bankruptcy filing the day before. The airline made 74 daily flights to 15 U.S. cities. The shutdown affected about 350 employees in Columbus, Ohio, and 100 in Greensboro, N.C.
Frontier Airlines, a discount carrier based in Denver, filed for bankruptcy on April 11 after its main credit card processor said it would start withholding significant portions of ticket sales. Unique among airlines that have sought bankruptcy protection so far this year, Frontier plans to continue flying.
Eos Airlines, a luxury all-business carrier based in Purchase, N.Y., filed for bankruptcy on April 26, ceasing operations the next day and dismissing most of its work force. Eos passengers' perks included gourmet foods, individual DVD players and seats that extended into flatbeds.
After more than 60 years of service to and within Hawaii, Aloha Airlines made its last passenger flight on March 31. The airline filed for bankruptcy protection 10 days earlier -- it had just emerged from a 14-month bankruptcy two years earlier -- and thought then that it would continue operations.
Retailer Sharper Image Corp filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Feb. 19, citing declining sales, three straight years of losses and litigation involving its Ionic Breeze air purifiers. It went out of business several months later.