LAS VEGAS, May 6, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Caesars
Entertainment Corporation (Nasdaq: CZR) ("Caesars Entertainment" or
"the Company") today announced that its Board has appointed the
Honorable Robert E. Gerber as Chief Restructuring Officer. The
appointment came at the recommendation of Caesars Entertainment's
independent director committee, the Strategic Alternatives
Committee. Judge Gerber will report to this Committee and help it
carry out its responsibilities, including advising on a potential
restructuring of Caesars Entertainment if the Company cannot
resolve its differences with Caesars Entertainment Operating
Company, Inc. ("CEOC") and its creditors with regard to CEOC's
restructuring and related litigation against Caesars Entertainment,
or if other factors make a potential restructuring of Caesars
Entertainment advisable.
"Caesars Entertainment has offered substantial value to CEOC in
an effort to end the protracted and expensive bankruptcy
proceedings of CEOC," said Fred
Kleisner, Chairman of the Strategic Alternatives Committee.
"Despite a proposal that would provide CEOC and its creditors with
value that Caesars Entertainment believes would be more than
sufficient to address the findings of the Examiner, as well as
settle the ongoing guarantee litigation pending against the
Company, there remains disagreement between the parties, over how
to quantify and allocate this value."
Caesars Entertainment believes that Judge Gerber will be
instrumental in assisting the Strategic Alternatives Committee in
its efforts. Judge Gerber has extensive experience with large
and complex bankruptcy proceedings. He was a United States
Bankruptcy Judge for the Southern District of New York for more than 15 years, presiding
over a wide variety of complex Chapter 11, Chapter 15, Section 304
and SIPA cases — including 10 with over $1
billion in debt. Judge Gerber was named as one of the
nation's outstanding bankruptcy judges six times. Prior to that, he
practiced with Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson in
New York, specializing in
securities and commercial litigation and, thereafter, bankruptcy
litigation and counseling.
Caesars Entertainment's Strategic Alternatives Committee is
presently comprised of three independent directors, is advised by
its own legal and financial advisors and is charged with exploring,
evaluating and reviewing potential strategic alternatives and
contingency planning for Caesars Entertainment as it relates to the
ongoing bankruptcy proceedings of CEOC and the related litigation
pending against Caesars Entertainment. The Committee also oversees
the Company's involvement in CEOC's bankruptcy proceedings.
Since the commencement of CEOC's bankruptcy, Caesars
Entertainment and its affiliates have spent in excess of
$345 million on legal and
professional fees associated with the restructuring. In its
first-quarter earnings report Thursday, in which management
announced record operating results, Caesars Entertainment noted
that while the cash forecast at the Company currently contemplates
liquidity to be sufficient through the end of the year, Caesars
Entertainment's cash balance will be consumed by expenses
associated with the CEOC restructuring unless it identifies
additional sources of liquidity to meet ongoing obligations as well
as to meet its commitments to support the CEOC restructuring.
As noted in the earnings report, if Caesars Entertainment is unable
to obtain additional sources of cash when needed, in the event of a
material adverse ruling on one or all of our ongoing litigation
matters, or if CEOC does not emerge from bankruptcy on a timely
basis on terms and under circumstances satisfactory to Caesars
Entertainment, it is likely that Caesars Entertainment would seek
reorganization under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code.
About Caesars Entertainment Corporation
Caesars Entertainment Corporation ("CEC") is the world's most
diversified casino-entertainment provider and the most
geographically diverse U.S. casino-entertainment company. CEC is
mainly comprised of the following three entities: the majority
owned operating subsidiary Caesars Entertainment Operating Company,
wholly owned Caesars Entertainment Resort Properties and Caesars
Growth Properties, in which we hold a variable economic interest.
Since its beginning in Reno,
Nevada, 75 years ago, CEC has grown through development of
new resorts, expansions and acquisitions and its portfolio of
subsidiaries now operate 50 casinos in 13 U.S. states and five
countries. The Company's affiliated resorts operate primarily under
the Caesars®, Harrah's® and Horseshoe® brand names. CEC's portfolio
also includes the London Clubs International family of casinos. CEC
is focused on building loyalty and value with its guests through a
unique combination of great service, excellent products,
unsurpassed distribution, operational excellence and technology
leadership. The Company is committed to environmental
sustainability and energy conservation and recognizes the
importance of being a responsible steward of the environment. For
more information, please visit www.caesars.com.
Forward Looking Statement
This release includes "forward-looking statements" intended to
qualify for the safe harbor from liability established by the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. You can identify
these statements by the fact that they do not relate strictly to
historical or current facts. These statements contain words such as
, "likely" , and "forecast" or the negative or other
variations thereof or comparable terminology. In particular, they
include statements relating to, among other things, future actions
that may be taken by CEC and the sufficiency of CEC's cash balances
for the remainder of 2016. These forward-looking statements
are based on current expectations and projections about future
events.
You are cautioned that forward-looking statements are not
guarantees of future performance or results and involve risks and
uncertainties that cannot be predicted or quantified and,
consequently, the actual performance of CEC may differ materially
from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.
Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the
following factors, as well as other factors described from time to
time in our reports filed with the Securities and Exchange: CEC's
ability (or inability) to secure additional liquidity to meet its
ongoing obligations and its commitments to support the CEOC
restructuring as necessary, CEC's financial obligations exceeding
or becoming due earlier than what is currently forecast and risk
associated with the CEOC restructuring and related litigation.
Source: Ceasars Entertainment Corporation
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SOURCE Caesars Entertainment Corporation