Bankruptcy

The owner of the Chicago Sun-Times, a storied newspaper once home to legendary columnist Mike Royko and other greats, followed its hometown rival by filing for bankruptcy protection Tuesday -- raising questions about whether both can survive in a brutal time for newspapers. The filing was widely seen as a step toward shutting down a feisty paper known for uncovering city scandals and that once went as far as to secretly operate a bar to expose crooked city inspectors.

Brotman Medical Center in Culver City, with the help of the Jewish Home for the Aging, emerged from bankruptcy protection Tuesday in a way that may result in a new senior living facility on the Westside. The 420-bed hospital said it returned to profitability after securing $29 million in financing, including $23 million in loans from the Jewish home.

L.A. Hotel Venture filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Wednesday in an effort to stave off creditors, access cash and restructure an agreement on a remodel of its Marriott Hotel in downtown Los Angeles. The filing lists about $500 million of debt and about $100 million in assets for the subsidiary owned by businessman Ezri Namvar, who filed for bankruptcy for himself and his investment company, Namco Capital Group Inc., this year. Although Namvar is the sole owner of L.A.

Saddled with billions in debt, shopping mall giant General Growth Properties Inc. sought protection from its creditors in Bankruptcy Court on Thursday, marking the largest Chapter 11 filing for a real estate company in U.S. history. The bankruptcy filing by General Growth, owner of the Glendale Galleria, Northridge Fashion Center and other Southland malls, had been expected for months.

As the Obama administration prepares to send Chrysler into Bankruptcy Court, with General Motors possibly to follow, one of the biggest losers may be the automakers' current and future retirees, a group of nearly 1 million people whose pensions and healthcare funds could be slashed by tens of billions of dollars. That could pose political trouble for the administration, which has pressed both companies since February to ready themselves for bankruptcy as a means of purging their massive debts.

As popular as bankruptcy is today, it's nothing new, going at least all the way back to the Bible's Book of Deuteronomy, which simply states: "At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts." If only it were that divinely simple. All these centuries later, a bankruptcy filing still offers forgiveness for many debts, or at least provides a payment plan to make them more affordable. But rules and regulations can rain down on an applicant like a plague of frogs.

President Obama's decision to save Chrysler by pushing it into bankruptcy Thursday puts the major U.S. automaker in risky, uncharted territory and could portend a similar outcome for General Motors Corp. as it races to meet its own government restructuring deadline. The administration is betting Chrysler's future on the company's ability to emerge quickly from what can be a complex and unpredictable legal process.

The Chrysler bankruptcy is huge financial news with international repercussions, but if you own one of the beleaguered company's cars, it gets personal. Here's what the bankruptcy means for consumers: Will my warranty still be honored? "All vehicle warranties will be honored without interruption," Chief Executive Robert Nardelli said. (His personal warranty is used up, however -- he's leaving the company.) Will extended service contracts stay in force? In-house contracts will be honored.

Chrysler dealers have been through the wringer before, and although Chrysler's bankruptcy on Thursday has many worried about a sales slide, most are staying optimistic. "This is completely uncharted territory, and there are still so many unknowns," said John Sackrison, executive director of the Orange County Automobile Dealers Assn. "Bankruptcy is not the preferred option, but each day we're learning a little bit more, and the dealers will come out stronger on the other side of this."

Chrysler's woes could turn out to be a blessing for General Motors Corp., paving a clearer path for the troubled company to avoid bankruptcy. With less than a month before its government-imposed deadline to restructure, GM is still attempting to reduce obligations to the United Auto Workers union and to holders of billions of dollars in the automaker's bonds.