Bankruptcy

Loyal buyers of Reisman pretzels need not worry: Although J. Reisman & Sons Inc., of Pennsauken, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, its pips, twists, rings, rods and minis won't disappear from store shelves. The family-owned company, which has been making pretzels for more than 75 years, received approval yesterday from U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Gloria M. Burns in Camden to use future receivables to keep the company rolling. "From what I understand, it's business as usual," said Arthur J. Abramowitz, a Cherry Hill lawyer who is representing the company in the bankruptcy proceedings.

WILMINGTON - The Roman Catholic Diocese of Wilmington has emerged from bankruptcy with the funding of a $77.4 million trust for victims of priest sex abuse. Attorneys told a Delaware bankruptcy judge that a check deposit and wire transfers had been made in compliance with Monday's deadline for funding of the trust. Under the diocese's reorganization plan, about 150 alleged abuse victims will share proceeds of the trust in return for releasing all legal claims against the diocese, its parishes, and affiliated entities.

The bankruptcy proceedings involving the owner of the Daily News and Inquirer have been assigned to a new judge, according to a filing made yesterday in federal bankruptcy court. Judge Jean K. FitzSimon had been handling the case since the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in February. Stephen Raslavich, chief judge of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania's U.S. Bankruptcy Court, will now preside over the case, according to the filing. Sources said that they believe that the case was reassigned because FitzSimon had health issues.

A federal bankruptcy judge yesterday approved an unusual reorganization plan for Suburban Furniture Galleries, a Cheltenham store that shut its doors last fall after taking thousands of dollars in deposits from consumers. The Chapter 11 plan was written by lawyers for customers who contended that they had been ripped off by the store and was designed to maximize the money returned to the consumers. The plan sailed through without discussion. "I think it's a done deal," said U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge David I. Scholl.

The troubled retail sector suffered another blow yesterday when Hills Department Stores Inc., the nation's fifth-largest discount chain, filed for bankruptcy court protection. The announcement came a month after Hills, of Canton, Mass., said it would close 28 of its 214 stores as part of a restructuring that would cost the company $125 million. Hills stock fell 12.5 cents a share to 62.5 cents yesterday in New York Stock Exchange trading. A Hills statement said the company's operations continued to be profitable, but "the burden of its interest and debt-repayment obligations requires the restructuring of its balance sheet.

Revel's exit strategy from Chapter 11 bankruptcy was approved by a judge Monday, clearing the way for the lavish but financially troubled casino to restructure its finances and pump resources into better marketing and new amenities in time for the busy summer. "I can conclude that withstanding the challenges that await the debtor - including difficult competing circumstances of the industry and Atlantic City as well - a reasonable prospect of success has been shown on this record," Judge Judith Wizmur said in approving the plan.

Dexter Watson , doing business as Dexter Watson Restaurant , doing business as Maine Star Coffee Cafe , doing business as Coffee Barafe , 237 Jacksonville Rd., Hatboro; Chapter 11; no schedules available. Tuan A. Tran , formerly doing business Trantiques , formerly doing business as Tuan Tran Antique Clock Sales , 929 Woodland Ave., Norristown; Chapter 7; no schedules available. Skinny Nutritional Corp. , 825 Lafayette Rd., Bryn Mawr; Chapter 11; no schedules available.

The Supreme Court needs to decide whether an inherited individual retirement account is protected from the claims of creditors in bankruptcy because U.S. circuit courts of appeal are now divided on the issue. Chief Judge Frank Easterbrook, on the Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Chicago, disagreed last month with an opinion last year from the Fifth Circuit appeals court in New Orleans. Easterbrook concluded that inherited IRAs are not exempt in bankruptcy. An IRA funded by someone's own contributions is immune from creditors' claims in bankruptcy.

Skinny Nutritional Corp. , the local flavored-water marketer that saw most of its board resign earlier this year, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. What appeared to be a corporate- governance revolt in January has progressed into a fight to keep the Skinny Water brand from falling into the hands of a secured lender. The Bryn Mawr company listed total assets of $2.9 million and total debts of $6.0 million in documents filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Philadelphia.

Synagro Technologies Inc., one of the largest contractors working with city government, filed for bankruptcy Wednesday as part of its planned sale to a European private equity group. Synagro president and chief executive officer Eric Zimmer said the Chapter 11 filing in Delaware would not affect the firm's South Philadelphia plant, which turns human waste into fertilizer and fuel. Houston-based Synagro, which has long been financially squeezed, is owned by another equity firm, Carlyle Group.

It was a rare sight. Not long ago, a woman stood at the entrance to the Kimmel Center before a sold-out Philadelphia Orchestra concert, holding a sign: "Need one ticket. " A few weeks earlier, a couple called the box office the day after a performance of The Rite of Spring and made a $10,000 gift. Points of contact like these represent the kind of passion the orchestra must stoke if it is to survive, yet they remain all too infrequent. More than nine months out of bankruptcy, it's still a struggle to get past living hand-to-mouth.