The Los Angeles Dodgers have filed for bankruptcy in a Delaware court, according to news reports. If the judge approves, the filing will give the team access to $60 million to cover expenses for about a month,
the
New York Times
reported.
According to the
Times
report, the team said it had secured a total of $150 million in financing to continue operations. A hearing was scheduled for June 28 in Delaware, where the Dodgers and four affiliated companies are incorporated, the
Times
article said.
The team said in court filings [June 27] that it planned to hold a competitive sale of its cable television rights within 180 days, a move that could permit [owner Frank] McCourt to hold onto the team because a deal would allow it to pay its debts and would be overseen by a bankruptcy judge instead of Major League Baseball….
But [Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud] Selig could seek a judge’s permission to remove McCourt as owner of a team because of a league provision that allows baseball to terminate the franchise of owners who file for bankruptcy protection. baseball has taken the position in the past that it has the right to approve any television deal.
Since McCourt took over ownership of the team in 2004, the Dodgers have incurred $400 million in debt, the
Times
article said. Frank McCourt and his ex-wife, Jamie, have been waging a court battle over who owns the team.
The most recent 17-year television deal with Fox was to have been part of a divorce settlement between the McCourts, but Selig canceled the agreement after he said it would have served only to enrich Frank McCourt and would place the team’s future in debt.
(Source:
New York Times,
June 27, 2011.)
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