Creditor committees have been characterized as the “watchdogs” of the bankruptcy reorganization process of large companies. Not only do creditor committees have broad statutory powers to oversee the debtor and its management, but they also play a key role in preventing abuses by professionals and other participants in the often complex corporate bankruptcy process. Furthermore, recent research has provided evidence of abusive fee practices in large corporate bankruptcy cases which point to failures in the oversight mechanisms of the process. This dissertation examines the role of creditor committees in the bankruptcy process and in selected outcomes of this process, with a focus on fees paid to bankruptcy professionals. Based on a unique data set comprised of 1,037 bankruptcy cases over the period 1999-2008, the research first examines committee characteristics along three separate dimensions of analysis: individual characteristics of members serving on committees; changes of committee composition over the life of the committees; and social characteristics of committee interlocks. The Calpine bankruptcy case is used throughout this dissertation to illustrate the research. This research finds a dense network of interlocks that dominates large cases, with financial industry members being significantly more likely to serve on multiple committees than non-financial industry members. Analysis of the data shows that over 50% of creditor committees are never amended and there are no systematic recompositions of the remaining committees. A test of small-world topology in the member creditor committee network fails to show a strong small-world structure in the member social network once it is corrected for imposed network topology. This dissertation then employs econometric models to evaluate whether creditor committee variables help explain professional fees in large bankruptcy cases. It finds a statistically significant and positive relationship between the social centrality measure of the creditor committee case and the professional fees paid. This finding points to potential conflicts of interest among the repeat creditor committee players and their constituents. The research fails to find a significant relationship between the presence of financial firms in creditors’ committees and professional fees paid in the case. The dissertation concludes with policy recommendations and suggestions for further research. / text

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität, Kiel, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (p. xv-xix).

The subject of corporate bankruptcy has been of interest to financial academicians and practitioners alike. Researchers have directed most of their attention to accounting-based models for predicting bankruptcy filings. Although some research has attempted to estimate the probability and costs of bankruptcy, a very limited amount is centered around the outcome of bankruptcy proceedings. Specifically, little is known about the circumstances that determine whether the firm will liquidate, successfully reorganize, or become an acquisition of another firm after filing for court protection. Given the potentially large losses to both creditors and stockholders, the determinants of bankruptcy outcome should be of considerable interest. The focus of this research is threefold. First, the factors that should have an effect on the disposition of the firm after the bankruptcy filing are examined for their influence on the disposition. Second, since there is some dispute as to the appropriate classification of acquired firms, the correct classification of acquired (or merged) firms is determined. Third, the effect of a major change in the bankruptcy law is examined. / Ph. D. / incomplete_metadata

Made available in DSpace on 2015-03-05T19:14:41Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 25 / Nenhuma / Esta pesquisa realiza uma investigação empírica sobre os custos indireto de falência da empresa da VARIG S.A.. Alguns autores consideram a relevância dos custos de falência como um dos assuntos ainda não resolvidos da Teoria Financeira e, se em algum momento estes custos são maiores do que seus benefícios, seu impacto na estrutura de capital passa a ser determinante na escolha da estrutura ótima de capital. Esse estudo propõe uma inovação, que é medir os custos de falência a partir do ponto de quebra da estrutura da série temporal. Como resultados, os custos indiretos de falência da VARIG demonstraram ser significativamente maior do que os valores encontrados por outros autores, tendo sido encontrados valores médios de 400% pelos dois procedimentos adotados. O valor estimado de mercado da empresa analisada, deteriorou-se significativamente à medida que se aproximava a data de solicitação da recuperação judicial. / This research makes an empirical investigation about the indirect bankruptcy costs of the company VARIG SA. Some authors consider the relevance of the bankruptcy cost one of the issues that have not been solved in the Financing Theory and, if at any time, these costs are higher than their benefits, their impact on the capital structure become a determiner on the choice of the optimal capital structure. This study proposes an innovation, which is to measure the bankruptcy from the breakpoint test structure. As a result, the indirect costs of VARIG’s bankruptcy demonstrate that these figures were significantly higher than the other figures found by other authors, having been found average 400% by the two procedures adopted. The estimated market value for the company analyzed deteriorated significantly as the petition of the judiciary recovery approached.

Esse trabalho analisa atividades contábeis não previstas na legislação falimentar brasileira e propõe que elas sejam atribuídas ao administrador judicial. A primeira atividade é a verificação da capacidade de continuidade da recuperanda; a segunda, a avaliação da capacidade de cumprimento do plano de recuperação; e, a terceira, a emissão de recomendação para que o processo de recuperação prossiga, seja extinto ou convolado em falência. A partir disso, os objetivos são discorrer sobre os potenciais benefícios das atividades propostas para o processo de recuperação e examinar se há impacto na remuneração do administrador judicial ou perito, caso essas atividades sejam adicionadas à legislação. Para atingir tais finalidades, inicialmente é realizada uma pesquisa bibliográfica, destacando-se os trabalhos de Santos (2009) e Moro Junior (2011), os quais abordam atividades similares às propostas no presente estudo, atribuindo-as ao perito contador. Esses estudos motivam a ampliação dos objetivos dessa pesquisa, a fim de contemplar os impactos também na remuneração do perito. Em seguida, efetua-se a análise documental do processo de recuperação judicial da empresa Beta e são coletadas informações que evidenciam a importância das atividades sugeridas para os envolvidos no processo. Consideram-se tais dados na elaboração do roteiro de entrevista da última etapa da pesquisa, na qual são feitas entrevistas com os diferentes agentes envolvidos nos processos de recuperação judicial. Constata-se a existência de um conflito de interesse entre as atividades realizadas pelo administrador judicial e pelo perito, após o deferimento do processo, e as atividades propostas, sendo assim, não devem ser atribuídas a esses agentes. Verifica-se a necessidade da análise da documentação inicial da empresa, principalmente para auxiliar o juiz quanto à decisão do deferimento ou não do processamento da recuperação. O aumento na remuneração do responsável por essa atividade pode ser factível, dependendo de sua previsão na legislação e de quem a executará. Não há um consenso sobre os benefícios ou impactos gerados pela análise da capacidade da empresa de cumprir o plano de recuperação, apesar de sua necessidade ser identificada na pesquisa documental, é entendida, pela maioria dos entrevistados, como uma tarefa exclusiva dos credores. Grande parte das opiniões dos entrevistados permanece a mesma ao se estudar a emissão de recomendação para que o processo prossiga, seja extinto ou convolado em falência. Essa atividade é apontada como necessária, de forma complementar, à primeira, de análise da documentação inicial, contudo, não foi possível identificar a sua necessidade pela pesquisa documental. / This research studies financial activities that are not foreseen in Brazilian legislation, and it proposes to allocate them to the trustee. The first activity is the analysis of the company\'s capability to recovery; the second is the analysis of the company\'s ability to fulfill the recovery plan; and the third is a recommendation for the process proceed, be extinguished or transformed into liquidation. The purposes are to discuss the potential benefits of the proposed activities for the reorganization process, and to check if there would be an impact on the remuneration of the trustee or the accountant, if these activities were added to the legislation. To achieve these intentions, was conducted a literature search in which we identified the Santos (2009) and Moro Junior (2011) researchers addressing similar activities to the proposed ones. Both treat the activities as being a responsibility of the accountant and not the trustees. These events led to the expansion of this research objectives to also study the impacts in the accountant\'s remuneration. In sequence, was made the documentary analysis of the reorganization proceedings of Beta company. The information collected showed the importance of the proposed activities for creditors and others involved in the process. These data were considered to draft the interview guide, used in the last stage of this research. The interviews were conducted with agents involved in reorganization processes. It has been found a conflict of interest between the activities performed by the trustee or the accountant after the approval of the process and the activities proposed. Therefore, they should not be attributed to these agents. It is verified a demand for the initial documentation analysis mostly to assist the judge when it has to approval or not the reorganization process. There is an increase in the remuneration of the agent responsible for this activity. This increase depends on its legal provision in the legislation and on who will perform it. There is no consensus about the benefits and impacts generated by the the analysis of the company\'s ability to fulfill the recovery plan. The necessity of this activity was acknowledged in the documentary research, but most of the interviewees understand it as a particular task of creditors. Most of the interviewees\' opinions remain the same in the study of the recommendation for the process proceed, be extinguished or transformed into liquidation. This activity is seen as necessary as a complement to the first one, the analyze the initial documentation. However, it was not possible to identify their need in the documentary research.

Esse trabalho analisa atividades contábeis não previstas na legislação falimentar brasileira e propõe que elas sejam atribuídas ao administrador judicial. A primeira atividade é a verificação da capacidade de continuidade da recuperanda; a segunda, a avaliação da capacidade de cumprimento do plano de recuperação; e, a terceira, a emissão de recomendação para que o processo de recuperação prossiga, seja extinto ou convolado em falência. A partir disso, os objetivos são discorrer sobre os potenciais benefícios das atividades propostas para o processo de recuperação e examinar se há impacto na remuneração do administrador judicial ou perito, caso essas atividades sejam adicionadas à legislação. Para atingir tais finalidades, inicialmente é realizada uma pesquisa bibliográfica, destacando-se os trabalhos de Santos (2009) e Moro Junior (2011), os quais abordam atividades similares às propostas no presente estudo, atribuindo-as ao perito contador. Esses estudos motivam a ampliação dos objetivos dessa pesquisa, a fim de contemplar os impactos também na remuneração do perito. Em seguida, efetua-se a análise documental do processo de recuperação judicial da empresa Beta e são coletadas informações que evidenciam a importância das atividades sugeridas para os envolvidos no processo. Consideram-se tais dados na elaboração do roteiro de entrevista da última etapa da pesquisa, na qual são feitas entrevistas com os diferentes agentes envolvidos nos processos de recuperação judicial. Constata-se a existência de um conflito de interesse entre as atividades realizadas pelo administrador judicial e pelo perito, após o deferimento do processo, e as atividades propostas, sendo assim, não devem ser atribuídas a esses agentes. Verifica-se a necessidade da análise da documentação inicial da empresa, principalmente para auxiliar o juiz quanto à decisão do deferimento ou não do processamento da recuperação. O aumento na remuneração do responsável por essa atividade pode ser factível, dependendo de sua previsão na legislação e de quem a executará. Não há um consenso sobre os benefícios ou impactos gerados pela análise da capacidade da empresa de cumprir o plano de recuperação, apesar de sua necessidade ser identificada na pesquisa documental, é entendida, pela maioria dos entrevistados, como uma tarefa exclusiva dos credores. Grande parte das opiniões dos entrevistados permanece a mesma ao se estudar a emissão de recomendação para que o processo prossiga, seja extinto ou convolado em falência. Essa atividade é apontada como necessária, de forma complementar, à primeira, de análise da documentação inicial, contudo, não foi possível identificar a sua necessidade pela pesquisa documental. / This research studies financial activities that are not foreseen in Brazilian legislation, and it proposes to allocate them to the trustee. The first activity is the analysis of the company\'s capability to recovery; the second is the analysis of the company\'s ability to fulfill the recovery plan; and the third is a recommendation for the process proceed, be extinguished or transformed into liquidation. The purposes are to discuss the potential benefits of the proposed activities for the reorganization process, and to check if there would be an impact on the remuneration of the trustee or the accountant, if these activities were added to the legislation. To achieve these intentions, was conducted a literature search in which we identified the Santos (2009) and Moro Junior (2011) researchers addressing similar activities to the proposed ones. Both treat the activities as being a responsibility of the accountant and not the trustees. These events led to the expansion of this research objectives to also study the impacts in the accountant\'s remuneration. In sequence, was made the documentary analysis of the reorganization proceedings of Beta company. The information collected showed the importance of the proposed activities for creditors and others involved in the process. These data were considered to draft the interview guide, used in the last stage of this research. The interviews were conducted with agents involved in reorganization processes. It has been found a conflict of interest between the activities performed by the trustee or the accountant after the approval of the process and the activities proposed. Therefore, they should not be attributed to these agents. It is verified a demand for the initial documentation analysis mostly to assist the judge when it has to approval or not the reorganization process. There is an increase in the remuneration of the agent responsible for this activity. This increase depends on its legal provision in the legislation and on who will perform it. There is no consensus about the benefits and impacts generated by the the analysis of the company\'s ability to fulfill the recovery plan. The necessity of this activity was acknowledged in the documentary research, but most of the interviewees understand it as a particular task of creditors. Most of the interviewees\' opinions remain the same in the study of the recommendation for the process proceed, be extinguished or transformed into liquidation. This activity is seen as necessary as a complement to the first one, the analyze the initial documentation. However, it was not possible to identify their need in the documentary research.

The long awaited insolvency act in force - Act 182/2006 Coll., changed the whole insolvency process by enabling new solutions to handle corporate insolvency issues. Among the most revolutionary features is the facilitation of a reorganization process. The thesis focuses on legal and economic aspects of the reorganization framework and compares it with the possibility solution of bankruptcy liquidation. The thesis analyzes the reorganizations of company called Kordarna, a.s. and also three subsidiary firms belonging to the KORD Group companies, which have been the first major test of the reorganization framework under the current Czech Insolvency Act. After the analysis of the procedural steps throughout the insolvency proceedings, the thesis arrives at a conclusion that given the circumstances, the chosen reorganization procedure was the best possible solution to Kordarna's insolvency for all classes of creditors and also other involved stakeholders. Moreover, the slow pace of the process is also discussed in detail. An important conclusion is reached in the field of bankruptcy estate valuation, where the thesis claims that the values of bankruptcy estates valuations were unrealistically high, because the adverse impact of the current extraordinary asset market conditions was never fully considered.

In Sweden, firms that file for bankruptcy are all auctioned off either piecemeal or as going concerns. Upon filing, managers lose control of the firm. In contrast, in the U.S. managers retain control by selecting to renegotiate the financial claims on the firm under court-supervision (Chapter 11). This thesis addresses the ongoing debate as to whether a Chapter 11-style renegotiation option is valuable to the firm’s securityholders. The optimal bankruptcy system depends on how well the auction system itself functions as well as on the extent to which managers misuse the renegotiation option to their own benefit (the agency problem). While there is substantial evidence on Chapter 11 cases, the thesis provides some first evidence on the workings of a pure auction system using Swedish data. The first essay examines direct costs, creditor recovery rates and auction premiums in Sweden, and compares the results to extant evidence on U.S. Chapter 11 cases. Overall, the results suggest that mandatory auctions provide a relatively cost-efficient bankruptcy procedure, producing recovery rates that are similar to those reported for much larger firms in Chapter 11. Moreover, auction premiums are significant and tend to increase with industry distress, which contradicts arguments that financially distressed firms sell assets below their true value. The second essay provides some first evidence on managerial compensation, turnover and corporate performance following Swedish bankruptcy auctions. The evidence indicates that mandatory auctions act as a substantial managerial disciplinary force: CEOs typically incur significant compensation losses and a majority of CEOs lose their job through the auction. Nevertheless, the operating profitability of the auctioned firms is typically at par with industry norms. Thus, although CEO wealth effects and turnover rates are dramatic, there is little support for the argument that managers in an auction bankruptcy system tend to delay filing at the detriment of the firm's going concern value. Essays three and four take a broader perspective on corporate restructurings. The third essay examines alternative econometric explanations for the lack of stock market gains to bidder firms reported in the literature. The analysis, which uses a large sample of Canadian targets, provides new evidence consistent with the proposition that the measured gains to relatively large, frequent acquirors reflect an attenuation bias produced by event-study econometrics. Moreover, the results suggest that mergers between relatively equal-sized firms, and which have not generated anticipation of future acquisition activity, tend to produce significantly positive bidder gains. This supports the use of mergers also as an alternative to bankruptcy. / <p>Diss. Stockholm : Handelshögskolan, 1998</p>

This study applies the Vasicek stochastic interest rate model in order to determine optimal capital structures for listed firms. A Swedish interest rate data set is used to estimate Vasicek model parameter that are reliable and independent of initial start values. These interest rate parameters are then used in a capital structure model which is evaluated through a sensitivity analysis and a firm-specific analysis which is applied to listed Swedish firms. The tax benefits of debt must be balanced against transaction costs and bankruptcy costs when determining optimal leverage ratio and optimal debt maturity. The results imply that firms should primarily focus on the long-term mean parameter of the interest rate process, the volatility of its firm value, the transaction cost of issuing debt and the effective corporate tax rate when choosing a capital structure. The capital structure model is well-founded in previous research and yields results which align with empirical data quite well. The conclusions of this study has implications for corporate finance, as the Vasicek model provides a better understanding of the stochastic nature of interest rates and its influence in determining optimal capital structures. / Denna studie tillämpar Vasiceks stokastiska räntemodell för att bestämma optimala kapitalstrukturer för noterade företag. Vasicekmodellen anpassas till ett Svensk dataset över räntor för att estimera parametrar. Dessa parametrar används sedan i en kapitalstruktursmodell för att analysera modellens känslighet för variationer i parametrar samt för att härleda optimala kapitalstrukturer för en rad Svenska noterade bolag. Skattefördelarna av skuld måste balanseras mot transaktionskostnader av skuldemissioner och konkurskostnader vid bestämning av optimal skuldsättningsgrad och optimal skuldlöptid. Resultaten antyder att företag bör primärt fokusera på det långsiktiga medelvärdet av den stokastiska ränteprocessen, volatiliteten av bolagsvärdet, transaktionskostnaden av skuldemissioner och effektiva bolagsskatten när de väljer en kapitalstruktur. Denna studie har implikationer för finansieringsteori då Vasiceks modell närmare modellerar räntors stokastiska dynamiker och dess påverkan på bestämning av bolags kapitalstrukturer.