Trump Entertainment’s attempt to transfer ownership of the Taj Mahal casino in Atlantic City has been waiting on the decision of an appeals court over union befits since last summer. Now the casino is asking the court to expedite a decision.
A court filing by Trump Entertainment Resorts implored the federal appeals court to finally issue a ruling on an appeal by the city’s main casino workers union—UNITE HERE of Local 54—of a bankruptcy judge’s ruling that the casino could cancel health and pension befits to workers.
The appeal set off a bitter battle between Icahn and the union, with Icahn saying he will close the property if the union’s appeal is granted.
In a letter to the clerk of the appeals court, an attorney for Trump Entertainment wrote: “We request, in all respect, that a decision, one way or the other, be issued in the very near future. While we fully appreciate the demands of this Court’s docket, the extended delay in issuing a decision—regardless of the outcome—has left the Trump Taj Mahal with an uncertain future,” the Press of Atlantic City reported.
Icahn’s companies “plan to and are willing to invest much-needed new capital in the Taj to secure its future as a revitalized property. But for such investment to occur a decision from this Court must be rendered very soon,” the letter said.
“In order for employees, customers and others to receive any benefit in 2016 from this planned investment, it is critical that such investment occur quickly. Without a decision, the fate of Trump Entertainment Resorts will be sealed for a third consecutive summer; worse, it may seal their fate permanently, an outcome that all parties seek to avoid,” the letter said.
