Student loans have become an albatross for many recent graduates. They can't pay off their student loans, but they can't have their student loan debts discharged in bankruptcy either.
So what can you do if you can't make your student loan payments? Fortunately, there are a few tools at your disposal.
It may be a wrap for one of the companies producing Brad Pitt's new film, "Killing Them Softly."
Inferno International LLC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Los Angeles last week, The Wall Street Journal reports. Inferno has produced a wide range of films, including "The Kids Are All Right," "The Women," and "Killer Elite." A costly legal dispute over the 2005 film "Just Friends" has taken a toll on Inferno's finances and led to the recent filing.
Last month, we reported that American Airlines CEO Tom Horton told the press that a merger with US Airways was probably not going to happen.
Now, it looks like a merger may be back on the table. Tempe-based US Airways is currently deciding whether to sign American's non-disclosure agreement, USA Today reports. The agreement would allow the two airlines to share sensitive information with one another and possibly work toward a merger.
Bad news for those of you still hanging on to Borders gift cards: They're now worthless and there's nothing you can do about it.
When the company went bankrupt last year, its gift cards were rendered useless. Angry cardholders filed suit against Borders for compensation. Last week, a bankruptcy judge held that Borders doesn't owe anything to gift card holders who failed to use the cards before the company closed its doors and who failed to file a claim before the deadline, The Wall Street Journal reports.
This week, Hostess Brands extended its final offer to the unions representing nearly half of the company's workers, CNBC reports.
The deal would allow Hostess to exit bankruptcy by cutting about $200 million in costs. In order to make the offer possible, advisors involved in the deal forfeited about $60 million in transaction fees. However, the advisers aren't the only ones to suffer under the new offer.
Are you in the market for a 1984 Olympic bronze medal? How about the gloves Evander Holyfield wore the night Mike Tyson bit off part of his ear? If so, you may be in luck.
On Nov. 30, Holyfield plans to auction off nearly all of his possessions, the Boston Herald reports. The auction will include Holyfield's jewelry, car collection, household items, and boxing memorabilia.
General Motors may be heading toward a second bankruptcy, according to Forbes. That means, whoever wins in November may be forced to bail out the automaker once again.
The Obama administration bailed out the struggling General Motors in 2009 when the company was facing insolvency. Now, the company’s market share is declining and its cars are receiving lower rankings than ever before, Forbes says.
Film giant Eastman Kodak filed its post-bankruptcy business plan on Monday, USA Today reports. If all goes according to plan, the company will be turning things around by the end of the year.
Kodak hopes to begin increasing its profits again by 2013. That growth would be a marked contrast from Kodak’s past few years of shrinking market share and declining profits.
While job growth is stalled and the stock market’s a mess, there are a few signs that things are starting to turn around for the economy. One of which is a steady decline in the number of people and businesses filing for bankruptcy.
For the eighteenth month in a row, the number of bankruptcy filings in the metro Phoenix area has dropped on a year-over-year basis, The Arizona Republic reports. There were 1,847 bankruptcies filed in Phoenix last month, compared to the 2,153 filed in July 2011. That’s a 14 percent decline.
The nearly bankrupt U.S. Postal Service could use a break. For months, the Postal Service has urged Congress to allow it to eliminate Saturday mail delivery and reduce its annual health benefits payment of more than $5 billion. Last week, the service defaulted on that payment.
On Thursday, the service reported a quarterly loss of $5.2 billion. On top of that, it warned that it will miss another payment due to the Treasury, The Associated Press reports.
On Tuesday, we reported that Natalie Hawkins, the mother of gymnast Gabby Douglas, filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy prior to the London Olympics. However, Hawkins isn't the only parent who's faced financial hardships in the years leading up to the Olympics.
Steven and Ileana Lochte, parents of swimmer Ryan Lochte, are behind on their mortgage payments and facing foreclosure. It's probably no coincidence that two of the Olympics' biggest stars happen to have parents with serious financial woes. But what's causing the parents of Olympians to go broke?
Life will probably never be the same for gymnast Gabby Douglas and her mom, Natalie Hawkins. After winning gold medals in both the individual and team all-around competitions, Douglas has become the de facto face of American gymnastics. She’s also sure to bring in a number of lucrative endorsement deals.
However, before all that, Douglas’ mom filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy, TMZ reports. Chapter 13 bankruptcy allows a debtor to set up a repayment plan to gradually eliminate his or her debt. With the earnings Douglas is bound to make after the Olympics, Hawkins won’t have any problems making her monthly bankruptcy payments.
Last Friday, Solyndra, the California solar panel manufacturer, filed its Chapter 11 plan. As expected, it carries bad news for U.S. taxpayers, Dow Jones reports.
On March 20, 2009, the U.S. Energy Department gave Solyndra a $527 million loan guarantee for the construction of a manufacturing facility to build the company’s solar panels. The government projected that the project would create more than 50,000 jobs. Instead, the company collapsed, filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 2011.
Jose Canseco has had a rough decade. The former outfielder’s reputation took a hit after he came clean about his steroid use. On top of that, he’s had a number of run-ins with the law, including an arrest at the Mexican border for drug charges.
Now, the six-time All-Star is filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Las Vegas, The Associated Press reports. While bankruptcy won’t do much for Canseco’s ailing public image, it’ll definitely help him get his financial affairs in order. Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection will shield Canseco from creditors and debt collectors while his debts are sorted out.
