More Clear Channel related stuff, and back to that lawsuit relating to the attempts by equity types Bain Capital and key Warner Music shareholders Thomas H Lee to buy the radio firm.
As previously reported, their attempted takeover of Clear Channel has been especially drawn out - mainly because it took a long time to persuade some of the radio group's shareholders to sell. By the time an acceptable deal had been struck between buyers and sellers the banks which had committed to fund the takeover had got cold feet (credit crunch and all that) and are trying to pull out. Bain and Lee say that doing so breaches past agreements (and, they say, if there are clauses in contracts which allow such a pull out, they shouldn't have ever been included).
The whole matter is now going to court, with Bain, Lee and Clear Channel on one side, and the banks on the other. Cases are being pursued through both the Texas and New York courts. The banks had asked the Texan court to delay the court hearing, due to start on 2 Jun, until January 2009, but Judge Lori Massey refused the request yesterday. A spokesman for Clear Channel yesterday welcomed that ruling, telling reporters: "Hopefully the banks are running out of delay tactics, and they will soon face a Texas jury who will make them take responsibility for their actions".
All of which means this case of lawyers representing financiers suing banks, all in the name of music radio, should go ahead the month after next.