Redfield Baum

The honorable Redfield T. Baum, is a Chief United States Bankruptcy Judge in the State of Arizona.

Notable Bankruptcy Cases

On May 5, the Coyotes' holding company, Dewey Ranch Hockey LLC, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. In a statement, Moyes announced that he had agreed in principle to sell the team to PSE Sports and Entertainment, headed by Research in Motion co-CEO Jim Balsillie, for $212.5 million.. As part of the deal, Balsillie intends to move the Coyotes to Hamilton, Ontario. Although initial reports said that Balsillie was considering Waterloo as well,

The announcement came as a surprise to the NHL and even to Coyotes staffers. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman had helped broker a deal that would have seen the Coyotes sold to Chicago Bulls and White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf. The Reinsdorf deal would have seen the Coyotes stay in Arizona. Terms of the Reinsdorf deal were not disclosed, but The Sports Network's Bob McKenzie speculated that it was almost certainly less than the Balsillie offer.

The bankruptcy hearing was scheduled for May 7, 2009. Court documents submitted by Moyes cite 30 creditors, including Moyes himself for an amount in excess of $103 million USD. TSN's Bob McKenzie said that Moyes was very receptive to Balsillie's offer because, as the team's largest unsecured creditor, the best chance of getting most of his money back was to persuade someone to buy the team out of bankruptcy.

At the bankruptcy hearing, the NHL argued that it had been in control of the team since November by virtue of a proxy agreement with Moyes. The NHL claimed this agreement, and several others signed by Moyes, specifically barred Moyes from filing for bankruptcy. Moyes claimed that the agreement only gave the league voting rights, not outright control. Baum scheduled a second hearing for May 19 to determine who actually controls the team.