Berry Chill LLC, the all-natural frozen yogurt company, has recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. CEO Michael Farah has stated that they are trying to "clean the slate" after opening several stores in what he calls "bad locations".

Mr. Farah said that all four Chicago Berry Chill stores will remain open at least temporarily, but that the company has not yet decided on the fate for its Loop locations, located at 132 N. La Salle Street and 500 W. Madison Street, in the Ogilvie Transportation Center.

He states that Berry Chill’s flagship store, 635 N. State Street, continues to thrive, but that the Loop stores struggle since they are not open on nights and weekends.

The bankruptcy should help the Chicago-based company move forward with growth plans that include opening a Lakeview location, according to Mr. Farah, a former commodities trader who started the company in 2008.

The bankruptcy filing shows that the company has between 50 and 99 creditors, between $1 million and $10 million in assets and between $1 million and $10 million in liabilities. Mr. Farah declined to be more specific about the company’s finances. Records show that the company owes $447,000 to law firm Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP and $309,000 to the Illinois Department of Revenue.

Perhaps, in these difficult economic times, most people do not want to increase the risk of their own bankruptcy by shelling out $5 for 8 ounces of frozen yogurt, despite the claims that the active enzymes found in the frozen treat can increase metabolism, boost the immune system and freshen breath.

If you find yourself needing to file for Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 personal bankruptcy, call a Legal Helpers attorney for experience that you can trust. Call toll-free 800-260-1402 to speak with a knowledgeable and compassionate bankruptcy lawyer.

For a high-profile Hollywood mogul, David Bergstein treated his finances a lot like Monopoly money.  With hundreds of millions of dollars in loans, the head of the studio ThinkFilm secretively kept track of debtor finances listed on a single Excel spreadsheet, monitored by a secretary who had no formal training in accounting. 

The most startling charge is that Bergstein allegedly used ThinkFilm’s pocketbook as collateral to get a $950,000 loan to gamble at Mandalay Bay casino.  He only repaid $150,000 of that amount to the casino, a repayment that was negated by $200,000 in interest and legal fees of $30,000.

In early April, he said he didn’t know of any lawsuit whatsoever.  Meanwhile, his employees went unpaid, as did their payroll taxes.  ThinkFilm did have an accounting department—but Bergstein routinely intervened under the radar and withdrew receivables before the accountants caught on.  Hopefully, reports of this devil-may-care attitude toward debt and affinity for Excel spreadsheets will have Disney think twice, as they had previously seriously considered the Pangea Media Group (which Bergstein advises) as a buyer of Miramax Studios.

With $150 million in debt, only $2-$3 million in receivables, and a $400,000 monthly overhead (of which Bergstein has been neglecting, adding his own employees to the long list of creditors) ThinkFilm is caught in a tailspin.  Fourteen creditors filed an involuntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy against the company, a bankruptcy that insures that they will be repaid so that Bergstein won’t file a Chapter 7 bankruptcy that would discharge his debt.  As a result, a freeze was put on the ThinkFilm film library, and the rights to films including Half Nelson and Born Into Brothels will be sold in a bankruptcy auction to repay the 14 creditors.

There are many loose threads in a bankruptcy like ThinkFilm’s.  Such as: if a company enters an involuntary bankruptcy, can the unpaid employees petition for their back salary?  Is there any chance that ThinkFilm can be resuscitated if Bergstein’s potential criminal charges cause him to step aside and let the studio secure better leadership?  Employees of similarly indebted companies in this climate are sure to wonder the same. 

If an unreliable employer has set you behind on your mortgage payments and creditors are harassing you around every corner, you can receive reliable protection.  Call our bankruptcy info line for a free initial consultation, toll-free at 1-800-260-1402!

The Las Vegas Monorail may have been doomed from the get-go. The monorail idea may have seemed like a good idea, but stretching only 3.9 miles long across the already congested Vegas Strip, the option of a public transportation over a 15-minute walk or cheaper cab ride did not appeal to tourists. 

The Recession was inarguably the fatal blow—fare hikes meant that commuters were paying a whopping five dollars for a lightning-fast ride.

The Las Vegas Monorail is not a public entity, as its creditors well know.  Yet the company attempted to file a type of Chapter 9 bankruptcy which is ordinarily reserved for state charges.  It is not a controlled by any elected public opinion nor funded by state taxes, but it does require state approval on their routine fare hikes and its budget—the governor even holds the power to appoint its directors. 

With low ridership, it is inconceivable that the state would even consider the Monorail as a reliable source of revenue or a foothold for political gains.  The Monorail had so far been given a free ride on taxes; for “providing a public service”, it had secured a not-for-profit status.

Because they cannot file a Chapter 9 bankruptcy, the Las Vegas Monorail is seeking three additional months to file for a Chapter 11 reorganization bankruptcy. 

If you are overwhelmed in debt and know that you earn too much to file a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, make haste!  Call our bankruptcy info line and learn more.  The initial consultation is free!  Call Legal Helpers at1-800-260-1402 now.