Union lawyer seeks tardy entry into Sparrows bankruptcy case
The Brew pointed out that during the pivotal hearing last week at U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware – where Sparrows Point was sold to a liquidating company – not one of the 75 lawyers present spoke on behalf of steelworkers or their union, the United Steelworkers of America.
We wrote, “The USW did not sign the list of parties before the bankruptcy court. There was no material presented by the union, and very limited remarks were made by the lawyer for the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors of which the USW is a member.”
Twelve weeks after RG Steel’s bankruptcy filing, a USW lawyer requests entry into the case. (Downloaded from court docket)
We can now report that – after the sale and following the USW’s agreement to void its collective bargaining contract with RG Steel, leaving 4,000 steelworkers in Maryland and Ohio without benefits and without jobs – the union’s associate general counsel, David R. Jury, today asked the bankruptcy judge for “admission pro hac vice.”
Latin for “for this occasion,” the request allows a lawyer who is not a member of the Delaware bar to partake in legal matters in a Delaware court.
But given that there is little left of the RG bankruptcy case except for mopping-up, any future appearance or argument by the USW’s legal eagle will be a variation of the old saying about closing the barn door.