Adelphia bondholders lose appeal of payments

Adelphia Communications Corp. bondholders including Bank of America Corp. lost their latest challenge to the company’s $17-billion bankruptcy payment plan after a judge ruled it had already been “substantially consummated.”

U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin in New York turned aside the appeal Monday, calling it “moot.” In February, she had declared the plan effective, opening the way for Adelphia, once the fifth-biggest U.S. cable TV company, to pay creditors and wind down operations.

The bondholders hold $1.1 billion in Adelphia notes. Under the approved plan, they received $900 million in payments. They stood to win as much as $250 million more had they prevailed in their appeal.