Apollo Global Management and Fidelity Management & Research Co. have raised allegations against former bankruptcy judge David R. Jones, accusing him of influencing a bankruptcy settlement that favored his romantic interest to the detriment of the lenders. This development came to light through a filing made on Thursday in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas.
David R. Jones, who mediated the bankruptcy proceedings of Sanchez Energy Co. back in 2020, is now under scrutiny for allegedly guiding the settlement in a way that cost Apollo and Fidelity hundreds of millions of dollars. The lenders contend that Jones hid his relationship with an attorney involved in the case, which they argue compromised the integrity of the judicial mediation process.
The controversy centers around the 2020 Chapter 11 proceedings of Sanchez Energy, an oil and gas company, where Apollo and Fidelity were among the secured lenders. The details of the filing suggest that the relationship between Jones and the attorney was undisclosed at the time, raising questions about potential conflicts of interest and the fairness of the mediated settlement.
For more details on this unfolding situation, you can read the full article on Bloomberg Law.