Colt Defense Announces Court Approval of Disclosure Statement for Plan of Reorganization

November 10, 2015 | By Business Wire News

WEST HARTFORD, Conn.

Colt Defense LLC (“Colt” and the “Company”) announced today the approval of the Disclosure Statement for its Second Amended Plan of Reorganization (“the Plan”) by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. The completion of this important milestone in Colt’s Chapter 11 cases will allow creditors to vote on the Plan, which is fully consensual and embodies a global settlement of all outstanding issues in the cases, as soon as next week.

The Plan to be voted on reflects a consensus reached among Colt’s key stakeholders, including a consortium of Colt’s secured lenders, Morgan Stanley as the lender under Colt’s pre-petition and post-petition secured term loan facilities, the official committee of unsecured creditors appointed in Colt’s bankruptcy case, Sciens Capital Management and the landlord at Colt’s West Hartford facility. If approved, the Plan will allow Colt to raise substantial new equity and debt to meet its business and capital needs, restructure its pre-bankruptcy debts, provide meaningful recoveries to creditors and remain in its existing production facility in West Hartford. Approval of the Disclosure Statement will let creditors vote on the Plan. If the Plan is approved the Company plans to emerge from Chapter 11 before the end of the year.

“The approvals we received today represent a significant achievement and another important step forward for Colt as well as its employees, customers, suppliers and vendors,” said Dennis Veilleux, Chief Executive Officer of Colt Defense LLC. “Thanks to the dedication and diligent efforts of all of our stakeholders, we are on a path to emerge from restructuring by the end of this year on the firm footing we need to execute our turnaround plan, supported by financing that reflects a spirit of cooperation and shared confidence in Colt as an iconic American brand.”

The Company filed the Second Amended Plan and related Disclosure Statement on November 10, 2015. A copy of the Plan and Disclosure Statement is available at http://www.kccllc.net/coltdefense.

Votes on the Plan must be received by the Company’s voting agent, Kurtzman Carson Consultants LLC, by December 7, 2015, unless the deadline is extended. Solicitation materials are expected to be mailed to all creditors entitled to vote on the Plan in the coming days. A hearing to consider confirmation of the Plan is currently scheduled for December 16, 2015.

This press release is for information purposes only and is not a solicitation to accept or reject the Plan. The Disclosure Statement, along with ballots and other solicitation materials, will be distributed directly to those creditors of the Company who are entitled to vote to accept or reject the Plan pursuant to the Disclosure Statement.

Perella Weinberg Partners L.P. is acting as financial advisor of the Company, Mackinac Partners LLC is acting as restructuring advisor of the Company and O’Melveny & Myers LLP is the Company’s legal counsel.

For access to documents filed in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware and other general information about these Chapter 11 cases, please visit: http://www.kccllc.net/coltdefense.

About Colt

Colt is one of the world’s leading designers, developers and manufacturers of firearms. The company has supplied civilian, military and law enforcement customers in the United States and throughout the world for more than 175 years. Our subsidiary, Colt Canada Corporation, is the Canadian government’s Center of Excellence for small arms and is the Canadian military’s sole supplier of the C7 rifle and C8 carbine. Colt operates its manufacturing facilities in West Hartford, Connecticut and Kitchener, Ontario. For more information on Colt and its subsidiaries, please visit www.colt.com.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains “forward-looking statements.” These statements about Colt’s expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions and future events are not statements of historical fact and reflect only Colt’s current expectations regarding these matters. Colt’s actual actions and results may differ materially from what is expressed or implied by these statements due to a variety of factors, including (i) the potential adverse impact of the Chapter 11 filings on Colt’s liquidity or results of operations, (ii) changes in Colt’s ability to meet financial obligations during the Chapter 11 process or to maintain contracts that are critical to Colt’s operations, (iii) the outcome or timing of the Chapter 11 process and the Section 363 process, (iv) the effect of the Chapter 11 filings or the Section 363 process on Colt’s relationships with third parties, regulatory authorities and employees, (v) proceedings that may be brought by third parties in connection with the Chapter 11 process or the Section 363 process, (vi) the Court approval or other conditions or termination events in connection with the Section 363 process, (vii) the increased administrative costs related to the Chapter 11 process; (viii) Colt’s ability to maintain adequate liquidity to fund operations during the Chapter 11 process and thereafter and (ix) other factors listed from time to time in Colt’s filings with Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements in this press release speak only as of the date on which they are made and Colt undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.