In re: Trump Entertainment Resorts — bankruptcy — affirmance — Roth

The Third Circuit today upheld a bankruptcy-court ruling voiding the continuing terms of a union’s expired collective-bargaining agreement in the Trump Taj Mahal’s Chapter 11 reorganization. The court summarized its reasoning thus:

Under the policies of bankruptcy law, it is preferable to preserve jobs through a rejection of a CBA, as opposed to losing the positions permanently by requiring the debtor to comply with the continuing obligations set out by the CBA. Moreover, it is essential that the Bankruptcy Court be afforded the opportunity to evaluate those conditions that can detrimentally affect the life of a debtor, whether such encumbrances attach by operation of contract or a complex statutory framework.

The appeal had received recent attention, on this blog and elsewhere, after counsel for the casino filed a letter on January 4 asking the court to hurry up and issue an opinion. How Appealing has links to early news coverage of today’s opinion.

Joining Roth were Shwartz and Scirica. Arguing counsel were Kathy Krieger for the union and Roy Englert for the casino.