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Peabody Energy Corp. is seeking dismissal of a Patriot Coal Corp. lawsuit over obligations to retirees, saying the case isn’t “ripe” because it depends on the outcome of Patriot’s negotiations with its union.
Patriot’s lawsuit, filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in St. Louis in March, shouldn’t go forward, Peabody said in court papers filed Friday.
Peabody also said that Patriot shouldn’t blame its financial problems on the 2007 spinoff that split the two St. Louis-based companies.
The issues raised by Patriot “do not present an ‘actual controversy’ between the parties that is ripe for judicial resolution,” lawyers for Peabody wrote. A hearing on Peabody’s request is set for April 29.
Under a contract, Peabody has funded part of Patriot’s health-care expenses for specified retirees since the spinoff.
Patriot said that if it succeeds in reducing its obligations to retirees under a pending motion to reject an agreement with the United Mine Workers of America, Peabody shouldn’t be able to get out of its own obligations.
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