Enron asks judge to get tough on deadbeat customers

[Robbien]

By The Associated Press
(8/19/03 - HOUSTON) — While thousands of Enron Corp.'s creditors can expect a fraction of the billions they are owed, Enron wants every penny from those who owe the bankrupt energy giant.

The company says more than 10,000 former wholesale and retail customers, each owing from five figures to $1 million, haven't paid $150 million in bills for services rendered or products delivered before and since Houston-based Enron went bankrupt in a whirlwind of scandal in December 2001.

Another 200 or so owe higher amounts for an overall total of more than $1.1 billion.

In a bankruptcy where most of more than 20,000 creditors likely will receive less than one-fifth of the estimated $67 billion they are owed and fees surpass $400 million, the amounts may seem small. Enron, however, is asking a judge to get tough on customers shirking responsibility to pay.

http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/business/81903_APbusiness_enron.html

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

1. Oh, those wacky Onion Writers!

Getting their copy on the AP wire! What will they pull next? ;-)

[NYC]

10. It really does sound like The Onion.

.

[bluestateguy]

2. they're kiddng right?

Tell me a court is not taking what they have to say seriously.

[Robbien]

6. I know this sounds as if it is Onion, but it is not

there was a related story six days ago

http://news.statesmanjournal.com/article.cfm?i=66175

where Enron is suing Oregon for wrongfully ending their power contract.

this is the good part of that article:

Mark Fuchs, Louisiana-Pacific’s general counsel, said the company rescinded its contract when it learned of the Houston company’s fraudulent manipulation of West Coast energy markets in 2000.

“Enron’s misrepresenting its position, as well as the manipulation of the market, caused us to enter into the contract,” Fuchs said.

Other former business partners have tried to back out of deals based on “meritless theories of fraud,” according to the Enron lawsuit filed Tuesday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan, New York.

[fabius]

14. Don't pay 'em a dime until...

...they pay all the State and federal taxes they owe that were COLLECTED from people in Oregon like me. They didn't pay a dime so far.

[Not a robought]

3. Jesus

Enron is such a pathetic saga that I can't even laugh when it's a joke.

[PartyPooper]

4. What about deadbeat CEO's, CFO's, etc.?

Why not get tough on deadbeat folks like Lay and Skilling?

[bluestateguy]

7. good issue for Democrats

Military tribunals and maximum security prisions for corporate criminals.

"Mr. Lay this is your new cellmate, Vito"

[Bozita]

13. They hold "Get Out of Jail Free" cards.

They've got the receipts.

[oasis]

21. A senate committee had a chance.The Dems had the chairmanship.

"This will not be a political investigation" Sen. Lieberman proudly stated.

[sasquatch]

5. As much as Enron ripped people off

They shouldn't get one fucking red cent.

[proud patriot]

8. Don't Pay Enron a dime until Ken Lay gets 40years

IMHO

[efhmc]

9. How about giving the money directly to the employees that were

close to or in retirement and lost everything because of all the evil manipulation of the CEO CPO and others.

[sasquatch]

12. Good Idea

very good idea:think:

[tweekinnow]

26. Absolutely!!!

Then imprison Lay,Skilling,Bush and Cheney,After seizing all of their assets.RICO anyone?

[gratuitous]

11. Superb idea, Enron!

Let's start with the millions of dollars in taxes you collected from Oregon ratepayers through PGE. Oddly enough, none of that money quite made it from your coffers to the government. Couldn't find a stamp, or didn't know the address to send the money to, I expect.

So, when can we Oregonians expect that $350 million back? You still have it, don't you? I mean, it's not like you've been paying any of your indebtedness is it, Enron?

[salmonhorse]

15. Sadly, it's not just ENRON ~

American capitalism knows no shame...

http://dadadot.org/energy.htm

[JackSwift]

16. This money should go to the

bankruptcy trustee, not Enron. The Enron fiasco and lack of prosecutions really pisses honest rank and file Republicans off. I hope our candidates start slamming Bush for the lack of prosecutions.

[Robbien]

17. They intend to give it to the bankruptcy trustee, so that

they do not have to put as much of their own money into the fund. Slight of hand again folks.

[this_side_up]

18. and Enron's

Portland General Electric - the only part of Enron that
still makes money - continues to pay their top execs
hundreds of thousands in salary PLUS hundreds of thousands
in bonus money.

Not sure that I am recalling this correctly but I
believe the bonus money has been paid at least twice
now and less than a year apart? I could be wrong.

One person receives 250K bonus, the other 400K.

The claim is that they need to keep these people
working there because they know Enron. Like these people could
get a job elsewhere?

It's just a continuing ripoff. Portland GE pays
$10 in taxes. State law says $10 is the minimum for
a corporation.

[this_side_up]

19. Bankruptcy trustee - what a joke on me

What a dummy I can be!

Since bankruptcy is handled in federal court with
a federal clerk, federal judge and all, I always ASSumed
that the trustee was a federal employee.

Wrong!


They are self-employed. The reason they really go after
individual people to ferret out all those
million dollar rings, necklaces, vacation homes etc that
they just know you are hiding and not declaring is due
to the fact that they are paid a certain percentage
of everything they can find.

Cute.

I'm too depressed by all of today's crap to check out
just how much of a percentage they get. Bet they are
all republicans.

[Bozita]

20. But they can't find $20,000,000 mansions and their carriage houses.

Steal from the poor = God's approval as in Ken Lay

Steal from the wealthy = Go to jail, go directly to jail, do not pass Go, do not collect $200. Oh, btw, let your children starve.

[imax2268]

22. when I hear the name Enron...

the only thing I can think of is Lay's wife Boohooing on tv...

"We have nothing left"..booooohoooooo...boooooohoooooo...!
Anyone got that picture of her...? I can't seem to find it...

Post it if you can...!

Nothing will happen to Lay while Chimpy McShrub is still in office...!

[Occulus]

23. all of this

is because corporations like Enron are persons under the law.

They never die; they are dissolved, or merged, but they never die; they can evade taxes in ways we can't. Death and taxes are of no concern to corporations, and they have the same rights as you do under the law. The only thing they can't do (thank GOD) is vote.

We must work to revoke corporate personhood for all time, everywhere in the US. Corporations must enter into business knowing their privelege to exist (note, NOT 'right to exist') may be revoked at any time, for any reason- even something so small as repeated insults to customers.

[tlb]

24. It's not as bad as it sounds.

As a party in bankruptcy the company is obligated to collect on all debts owed to it for the benefit of the creditors Enron itself owes. Failure to make good faith collection attempts would constitute a fraud on the bankruptcy court which the trustees in bankruptcy could not and would not permit.

[ctex]

25. The law is on Enron's side on this issue

One cannot avoid repaying a legitimate debt to a person or company simply because that person or company is bankrupt.

If you get a $100,000 mortgage from a bank to buy a home, you won't get a free home if that bank files for bankruptcy. This is an analogous situation.

However, under certain circumstances there is a right to offset. For example,Company A owes Enron $10 million for natural gas, but Enron owes Company A $7 million for electricity. If these transactions were done under say, a master swap agreement, Company A sends the difference to Enron to setttle all claims. OTOH, if the transactions are totally unrelated, Company may have to pay Enron the full $10 million and then wait for it's pennies on the dollar payment for it's unsecured claim of $7 million.