Canada

Canadian pulp-and-paper company AbitibiBowater Inc. has filed a Chapter 11 plan of reorganization that proposes to pay its secured debt in full and would hand equity to its unsecured creditors, Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review reported. In a press release, AbitibiBowater said it filed the plan Tuesday with both the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del., and the Quebec Superior Court in Canada, where the company's U.S. and Canadian units have each sought protection from their creditors.

The Canadian media landscape is poised for a major shake-up that could result in greater competition as a result of moves by Shaw Communications Inc. and Torstar Corp. to buy the television and newspaper assets, respectively, of Canwest Global Communications Corp., Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review reported. CanWest has been selling assets as part of its ongoing bankruptcy protection proceedings to pay off its creditors. As part of the deal for Canwest's television operations, Shaw has reached an agreement with Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

Calgary's overburdened hospitals have little space to soak up hundreds of extra surgeries should a private clinic at the heart of a legal dispute shut down, leaving patients staring down long wait times for orthopedic procedures, health experts contend, The Calgary Herald reported.

Swedish network equipment vendor L.M. Ericsson Telephone Co. has purchased Nortel Networks Corp.'s controlling stake in a South Korean joint venture for $242 million in cash, a move that should help boost its footprint in the Asian country, Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review reported. Ericsson said Wednesday that it has bought Nortel's 50% plus one share stake in its joint venture with LG Electronics Inc., LG-Nortel. LG-Nortel will be renamed LG-Ericsson and will continue to have its headquarters in Seoul.

Davie Yards Inc. has halted work on the first and most advanced of five offshore oil supply ships ordered by international customers, and on Monday a further 100 workers will be laid off at its Lévis facilities opposite Quebec City, The Montreal Gazette reported. Davie was given protection from creditors under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act on Feb. 24 after it ran out of cash and began a second restructuring program. It said almost 1,600 employees would be laid off, leaving about 160 working to complete the first vessel and on engineering and planning.

An Alberta judge has appointed a receiver over the companies and assets of Gary Sorenson, who is charged in an alleged fraud that has ballooned to as much as $500-million, making it the country's largest alleged Ponzi scheme, the National Post reported. The justice found that Mr. Sorenson's businesses, known as the Merendon companies, which are located in Central and South America, have received more than $50-million from companies run by his alleged co-conspirator in the Ponzi scheme, Milowe Brost. "None of the companies has accounted for any of the monies received.

Skyservice had survived recessions and dips in travel demand before, The Globe and Mail reported. This past winter marked its eighth year of serving tour operator Signature Vacations and the 15th year of flying on behalf of Sunquest Vacations, which is owned by Thomas Cook Canada Inc. And Skyservice appeared to have had access to a steady stream of revenue from its two major customers until the fall of 2012, court files show. But this time was different. In January, Signature completed its merger with Sunwing Travel Group, which operates its own fleet of planes.

Haemacure Corp said it received permission from the Superior Court of the Province of Quebec to sell its assets to Angiotech Pharmaceuticals Inc, a secured creditor of Haemacure, Reuters reported. The Canada-based biotherapeutic company said the United States Bankruptcy Court had previously authorized the sale to Angiotech of the assets of Haemacure's U.S. subsidiary. Haemacure also said it obtained a second extension, until April 19, within which to make a proposal to its creditors.

General Motors of Canada Ltd. has rejected calls to follow its parent company's example and voluntarily reinstate dealers who were terminated when the auto maker restructured its operations last year, saying courts and arbitrators should rule on demands by some dealers that their businesses be restored, The Globe and Mail reported. "We cannot rewrite history," Marc Comeau, GM Canada's vice-president of sales and marketing, said in a letter to Canadian Automobile Dealers Association (CADA) president Rick Gauthier and the company's remaining Canadian dealers. That answer to Mr.