Legislative, Regulatory & Legal

Montvale, N.J. -- The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. said Friday that it has secured a $490 million financing package from Ron Burkle’s Yucaipa Cos., Mount Kellett Capital Management and investment funds managed by Goldman Sachs.

The combination debt and equity financing, which is subject to court approval, will allow the grocer to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection early in 2012.

Indianapolis -- Shopping mall owner Simon Property Group said Friday it has filed a complaint against the State of Indiana in Marion County Circuit Court.

The suit is not for monetary damages but is a move to try and force the state to make Amazon.com collect sales tax in order to erase Amazon’s pricing advantage over brick-and-mortar retailers.
 

New York City -- A homeless man was charged with murder Thursday for a baseball bat attack on a 74-year-old Lakewood man in a Southern California Walmart, the Associated Press said.

Richard Lawrence Kalfin was charged with murder with a special allegation that he used a deadly weapon. He faces 57 years to life in prison if convicted and remained jailed on more than $1 million bail.

Arlington, Va. -- The Retail Industry Leaders Association, along with 125 business groups and employers nationwide, on Wednesday asked the Congressional Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction to include in their recommendations to the House and Senate a provision that would close the online sales tax loophole that is harming brick-and-mortar retail businesses and the communities they serve.

Secaucus, N.J. -- Syms Corp. and its Filene’s Basement subsidiary said Wednesday that they have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and will liquidate all stores and assets over the coming several months. Syms acquired the century-old Filene’s out of bankruptcy in 2009 for $63 million.

Arlington, Va. -- The Retail Industry Leaders Association on Tuesday issued a statement in response to Bank of America’s decision to abandon its plan to charge new fees on debit card users.

San Francisco -- Four months after the Supreme Court tossed out a huge class-action lawsuit by female Walmart employees who claimed they were discriminated against by the world’s largest retailer, a smaller, regionalized group of employees has regrouped to file another gender-bias claim against Wal-Mart Stores.

WASHINGTON — The National Retail Federation said it welcomed a proposal unveiled by House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp, R-Mich., to reform the nation’s corporate tax structure.

WASHINGTON — The National Retail Federation announced that it has asked the Commerce Department to delay implementation of a controversial plan to vastly expand Internet domain names, saying retailers and other businesses need more information before moving forward.

Issaquah, Wash. — Costco Wholesale's donations to a Washington state voter initiative that would legalize liquor sales by private retailers have broken state records, according to published reports.