U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Approves Chrysler’s First Day Motions in Federal Court

Last Friday Judge Arthur Gonzalez in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New York City immediately approved a series of court filings from Chrysler LLC known as "first-day motions." The orders issued by the court allow Chrysler to continue to operate its business during the reorganization proceedings. The quick action was expected, since the court is used to dealing with large, albeit less publicized, bankruptcies. However, the true test of whether a swift bankruptcy can occur in 30 to 60 days as the Treasury Department claims remains at an unknown date in the future. Still to be heard from are Chrysler's debtors who object to the proposed $2 billion settlement on $6.9 billion in secured Chrysler debt.