In Tuesday’s (8/9) Philadelphia Inquirer, Peter Dobring reports, “In Round One of the American Federation of Musicians’ effort to show that some of the Philadelphia Orchestra Association’s endowment is not restricted by donor wishes, the association failed to produce documentation for 12 percent of gifts in the endowment. In a letter to the judge in the association’s Chapter 11 case, the union’s national pension fund says the first cache the orchestra provided shows 476 documents, 57 of which were images that said ‘documentation has not been found.’ The union lawyer, Herman L. ‘Hank’ Goldsmith of Proskauer Rose, says the lack of records about specific donor wishes bolsters the union’s suspicion that the orchestra cannot prove that its $120 million in various endowment accounts is donor-restricted. That being the case, he says, parts of the endowment can be used to satisfy the union’s potential claim as the largest creditor in the bankruptcy. … The association objects to the scope of the request for documents, calling it ‘overly broad and burdensome.’ Judge Eric L. Frank is expected to hear arguments in the matter Wednesday. Additionally, the Aug. 5 letter to Frank says, the association’s first cache was so lacking in detail that the union is entitled to a deeper level of documentation. … Association bankruptcy lawyer Lawrence G. McMichael said Monday, ‘We’re not stonewalling. If it’s stuff we can easily produce, we’ll produce it.’ ”
Posted August 10, 2011
