Toys R Us bankruptcy lawyers get $56M while laid-off workers $2M
- 5 years ago
VIRGINIA — A year after Toys "R" Us closed, tens of thousands of laid-off workers will get some of the estate's remaining cash to make up for severance they were denied during the court case.
Bloomberg reported Judge Keith L. Philips of the Eastern District of Virginia awarded $2 million to the workers, who were promised severance at the start of bankruptcy as part of a benefits plan that was later canceled as the restructuring went haywire.
According to Bloomberg, former workers led by 30-year Toys "R" Us employee Ann Marie Reinhart Smith filed a class action claim in 2018 to the bankruptcy court to ask that severance claims get the same priority as administrative claims.
The retailer's bankruptcy is in its final stages and is now focusing on distributing cash set aside for administrative fees.
According to Bloomberg, these expenses usually include fees for advisers, lawyers and other parties involved in winding down the company. They're given high priority by the court for repayment in full—of course.
The $2 million settlement means 33,000 axed employees will get about $60 bucks a person.
To put that into perspective, the law firm of Kirkland & Ellis LLP, which represented Toys "R" US in the bankruptcy was awarded $56 million in fees.
So that's what it feels like to be a Toys "R" US kid.
Bloomberg reported Judge Keith L. Philips of the Eastern District of Virginia awarded $2 million to the workers, who were promised severance at the start of bankruptcy as part of a benefits plan that was later canceled as the restructuring went haywire.
According to Bloomberg, former workers led by 30-year Toys "R" Us employee Ann Marie Reinhart Smith filed a class action claim in 2018 to the bankruptcy court to ask that severance claims get the same priority as administrative claims.
The retailer's bankruptcy is in its final stages and is now focusing on distributing cash set aside for administrative fees.
According to Bloomberg, these expenses usually include fees for advisers, lawyers and other parties involved in winding down the company. They're given high priority by the court for repayment in full—of course.
The $2 million settlement means 33,000 axed employees will get about $60 bucks a person.
To put that into perspective, the law firm of Kirkland & Ellis LLP, which represented Toys "R" US in the bankruptcy was awarded $56 million in fees.
So that's what it feels like to be a Toys "R" US kid.