LOS ANGELES (AP) - The company behind the "Girls Gone Wild" video empire
has filed for bankruptcy in a move it says is an effort to restructure
its legal affairs after several disputed court judgments.
GGW
Brands LLC and several subsidiaries filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on
Wednesday in Los Angeles, listing more than $16 million in disputed
claims.
The largest claim is $10.3 million that Wynn Resorts
Limited is seeking from the company for judgments entered against "Girls
Gone Wild" founder Joe Francis over a gambling debt and statements he
has made about the casino and its founder, Steve Wynn.
The figure
does not include a $19 million judgment Wynn won against Francis in a
slander trial last year. The case, which centered on Francis' claims
that Wynn threatened to kill him over the gambling debt, is being
appealed.
Francis no longer GGW Brands, which has made a fortune
selling videos and magazines of young women flashing their breasts.
Subsidiary companies GGW Magazine and GGW Events have also filed for
bankruptcy. Bankruptcy proceedings generally halt efforts to collect
judgments in other courts.
"Girls Gone Wild remains strong as a
company and strong financially," the company said in a statement,
likening itself to other businesses such as American Airlines and
General Motors that have filed for bankruptcy to restructure. "The only
reason Girls Gone Wild has elected to file for this reorganization is to
re-structure its frivolous and burdensome legal affairs."
The
second largest claim listed in the proceedings is a nearly $5.8 million
judgment a St. Louis woman won against Francis last year in a Missouri
court. Tamara Favazza sued after she learned she had been featured on a
"Girls Gone Wild" DVD over an incident when she was a 20-year-old
college student and someone lifted her tank top at a bar and flashed a
camera.
Francis and his company, Mantra Films, are seeking to have the judgment overturned in federal court.
The bankruptcy filing also lists unspecified legal fees in the Wynn and Favazza cases .
