MacKeyser court accepts disclosure statement, settlement agreement

By Kali Hays

New York, Dec. 15 – MacKeyser Holdings, LLC received approval of the disclosure statement related to its joint plan of liquidation, according to a Dec. 15 order from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

The court also approved a settlement among the company, its official committee of unsecured creditors and its secured lenders, Health Evolution Partners Fund I, LP, Health Evolution Partners Co-Invest, LLC, Essilor of America, Inc. and Essilor Laboratories of America, Inc, according to a separate order.

As previously reported, Health Evolution and its affiliates are the majority equity owners of MacKeyeser, holding 75.58% of outstanding capital units. Essilor and its affiliates hold 3.83% of the outstanding capital units.

Health Evolution is also MacKeyser’s debtor-in-possession lender and holds pre-bankruptcy secured debt of about $23 million, while Essilor holds pre-bankruptcy secured debt of $4 million, according to the settlement motion.

A separate settlement agreement between MacKeyser, Health Evolution and the committee was approved in October, with Health Evolution agreeing to subordinate a portion of its secured claim and allowed continued use of cash collateral.

Under the approved settlement, Essilor will have an allowed secured claim against the estate in the amount of $3.75 million and an allowed general unsecured claim of $3.16 million, and Essilor will assign its interest in MacKeyser back to the company.

The transferred interest will be treated as an asset of the litigation trust provided for in the company’s proposed plan of liquidation.

Treatment of other creditors will include the following:

• Holders of DIP facility claims, general unsecured claims and a Health Evolution pre-bankruptcy secured claim will receive liquidating trust proceeds;

• Administrative claims will be paid in full in cash;

• Holders of priority tax claims and priority non-tax claims will receive deferred cash payments over a period of no more than five years, plus interest from the effective date through the payment date;

• Holders of miscellaneous secured claims will either be paid in full in cash, receive the collateral securing the claim or receive another treatment that renders the claim unimpaired; and

• Holders of intercompany claims, subordinated claims and interests will receive no distribution.

A hearing to confirm the liquidation plan is set for Feb. 2.

Las Vegas-based MacKeyser Holdings and operating affiliates American Optical Services, LLC and Exela Hearing Services, LLC manage integrated eye care and hearing systems providers. The company filed for bankruptcy on June 20 under Chapter 11 case number 14-11550.

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.