In a fascinating case of brinksmanship, Trump Entertainment, which owns Atlantic City’s Trump Taj Mahal casino, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in September citing, among other reasons, the decline in Atlantic City’s gambling market, debt, and significant tax increases. The Bankruptcy Court agreed to allow the Company to break its contract with the union representing its employees because wages and benefits were a significant contributor to the Company’s debt.

Ormet, a Delaware corporation, recently went bankrupt and shuttered its facilities in Ohio and Louisiana. As part of the bankruptcy proceedings, Ormet agreed to sell its Ohio plant for $25 million. The Steelworkers Pension Trust, the union representing Ormet’s employees, tried to delay the closing on the theory that the deal approved by the judge improperly extinguished the Trust’s $5.5 million pension claim and that the Section 363 sale violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act or the Multiemployer Pension Plan Amendments Act. The Trust lost.

The United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) is objecting to Patriot Coal’s proposed plan to sell the majority of its operating assets. Patriot Coal proposes using a “stalking horse bidder,” which is when the best bidder gets some incentives before the auction. These incentives are intended to increase the value of the starting bid and eventually result in higher bidding overall.