Tribune Co. bankruptcy plan faces new hurdles

Objections to Tribune Company's Chapter 11 disclosure statement flooded into the Delaware Bankruptcy Court on Thursday, complicating the company's chances of winning a judge's approval of the document at a key hearing May 20.

The filings included a new objection from a previously silent group of senior creditors angry over its treatment in the company's plan of reorganization, further splintering the all-important senior creditor class in the case. The Labor Department also weighed in, saying the document does not give ample disclosure to the agency's ongoing investigation into whether Tribune Co.'s contested 2007 leveraged buyout violated federal labor laws. Legal experts said it was difficult to tell at this point whether the objections could disrupt the timing of Tribune Co.'s exit from Bankruptcy Court, which is now scheduled for early August. But at the least, Tribune Co. lawyers have their work cut out for them to address all the concerns in a new draft of the disclosure statement, which U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Carey will consider at next Thursday's hearing.