Tribune Company bankruptcy nearing finish line

After 27 months of legal wrangling, the Tribune Company and its creditors are finally headed into what could be the deciding chapter of the company's tangled bankruptcy saga.

The case will enter what bankruptcy law practitioners call confirmation hearings Monday, and for the next two weeks U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Carey in Delaware will hear evidence from an army of lawyers arguing for and against two competing visions of how to restructure the Chicago-based media conglomerate. Here are some answers to help explain where the case stands as the battle begins. Tribune is expected to remain intact for now. But it will be owned by lenders and hedge funds that will trade their billions in claims for stock in a new company that ultimately will be publicly traded. JPMorgan Chase, Oaktree and Angelo Gordon will likely end up as majority owners. They will pick a new board to run the company, which likely will pick its own management team.