Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Sustainable Plastics
  • Rubber News
Subscribe
  • Login
  • Register
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Processor News
    • Suppliers
    • More News
    • Digital Edition
    • End Markets
    • Special Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Resin pricing news
    • Videos
    • Injection Molding
    • Blow Molding
    • Film & Sheet
    • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
    • Rotomolding
    • Thermoforming
    • Recycling
    • Machinery
    • Materials
    • Molds/Tooling
    • Product news
    • Design
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Sustainability
    • Public Policy
    • Material Insights Videos
    • Numbers that Matter
    • Automotive
    • Packaging
    • Medical
    • Consumer Products
    • Construction
    • CEO Issue
    • Diversity
    • Best Places to Work
      • 2022 winners
    • Processor of the Year
    • Rising Stars
    • Women Breaking the Mold
  • Opinion
    • The Plastics Blog
    • Kickstart
    • One Good Resin
    • BRICS and Plastics
    • All Things Data
    • Viewpoint
    • From Pillar to Post
    • Perspective
    • Mailbag
    • Fake Plastic Trees
  • Shop Floor
    • Blending
    • Compounding
    • Drying
    • Injection Molding
    • Purging
    • Robotics
    • Size Reduction
    • Structural Foam
    • Tooling
    • Training
  • Events
    • K Show Livestream
    • Plastics News Events
    • Industry Events
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Livestreams/Webinars
    • Editorial Livestreams
    • Ask the Expert
    • Plastics News Events Library
    • Processor of the Year submissions
    • Plastics News Executive Forum
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Plastics News Caps & Closures
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
    • Plastics in Automotive
    • Reuters Responsible Business Europe 2022
    • Reifenhäuser Technologies Livestreams
    • Polymer Points Live
    • Numbers that Matter Live
    • Plastics in Politics Live
    • Sustainable Plastics Live
    • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
    • Plastics in Healthcare Library
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
  • Resin Prices
    • All Resins
    • Commodity TPs
    • High Temp TPs
    • ETPs
    • Thermosets
    • Recycled Plastics
    • Historic Commodity Thermoplastics
    • Historic High Temp Thermoplastics
    • Historic Engineering Thermoplastics
    • Historic Thermosets
    • Historic Recycled Plastics
  • Rankings & Data
    • Injection Molders
    • Blow Molders
    • Film Sheet
    • Thermoformers
    • Pipe Profile Tubing
    • Rotomolders
    • Mold/Toolmakers
    • LSR Processors
    • Recyclers
    • Compounders - List
    • Association - List
    • Plastic Lumber - List
    • All
  • Directory
  • Custom
    • Sponsored Content
    • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
    • Conair Sponsored Content
    • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
    • ENGEL Sponsored Content
    • White Papers
    • Classifieds
    • Place an Ad
    • Sign up for Early Classified
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
August 23, 2018 02:00 AM

Former Venture owner back in court for more than $410M commercial dispute

Audrey LaForest
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print
    File photo
    Winget

    Detroit — Plastics entrepreneur Larry Winget is back in court for a commercial dispute that has lasted more than a decade.

    In a court filing submitted in June, JPMorgan Chase Bank said it is seeking to recover roughly $410 million, plus an additional $368 million in unpaid interest and fees, owed to it under a credit agreement between Chase and several entities owned and operated by Winget and the Larry J. Winget Living Trust.

    Chase did not immediately respond to requests for comment by Plastics News.

    Grand Rapids, Mich.-based law firm Drew, Cooper & Anding P.C., is representing Winget and the living trust. Lead attorney John Anding had no comment on the case.

    The more than $400 million dispute stretches back to March 2003, when Venture Holdings Co. LLC, a Fraser, Mich.-based injection molder owned by Winget that made a variety of interior and exterior auto parts, filed for Chapter 11 protection. The filing was considered a default under the credit agreement, and all obligations became immediately due and payable.

    Venture's bankruptcy came just 10 months after its German subsidiary, Peguform GmbH, filed for insolvency, cutting off the U.S. parent company from the bulk of its European income.

    After a failed attempt at restructuring, Venture's assets were liquidated and proceeds were applied to the underlying debt. But Chase and the lenders were still owed more than $300 million under the credit agreement, according to court documents from 2017.

    On Aug. 15, the U.S. District Court in Detroit entered several orders allowing Chase to collect the millions of dollars from the living trust for guarantees that were initially put up to prevent Venture Holdings from failing many years ago.

    Fifteen other firms connected to the living trust are included in the most recent court filings related to the case, including JVIS-USA LLC, Deluxe Technologies LLC and Golf Course Services LLC, Winget's private golf course in Rochester Hills, Mich., operating as The Wyndate Country Club.

    The case is ongoing.

    'Long-running saga' continues

    During a February 2017 hearing, U.S. Circuit Judge Alice Batchelder called it "the latest episode in a long-running saga that must now come to a close."

    But more than a year later, the saga continues.

    Chase first sued Winget and the living trust in 2008 over unpaid debts dating back to 1999, when Venture obtained $450 million from a group of lenders to finance the purchase of Peguform, according to court documents. Peguform's insolvency years later, however, triggered certain default and acceleration clauses in the credit agreement.

    Winget paid $50 million to Chase, satisfying his portion of the debt, but a substantial balance — more than $400 million — remains.

    It wasn't the first time Venture was entangled in a lawsuit over finances, however.

    In 2005, Venture was being investigated by federal authorities over possible accounting irregularities between 1998 and 2002.

    And in 2004, the bankrupt injection molder and its related manufacturing units filed a lawsuit against Winget, members of his family and other business interests, alleging they siphoned hundreds of millions of dollars out of Venture, resulting in its bankruptcy.

    At NPE 2003, just months after the company filed for Chapter 11 protection, a Venture spokeswoman confirmed it was buying 18 injection molding machines, including a probable order for more than 40 additional presses, from the HPM Division of Taylor's Industrial Services LLC.

    HPM, which had a turbulent history of its own involving ownership changes, layoffs, unpaid taxes and bankruptcy, closed its doors in late 2009. In 2011, Chinese machinery maker Guangdong Yizumi Precision Machinery Co. Ltd. bought the intellectual property of HPM, forming Yizumi-HPM Corp.

    And adding to the saga of second chances and financial disruptions, in 2006, the Winget-controlled firm NJT Enterprises LLC bought Mayco Plastics Inc. for $5.5 million through the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Detroit.

    The Sterling Heights, Mich.-based injection molder and Tier 1 auto supplier had entered Chapter 11 protection earlier that year. The company now operates as Mayco International LLC.

    RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
    Hillenbrand cites recycling as 'strategic growth' area with Herbold acquisition
    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Do you have an opinion about this story? Do you have some thoughts you'd like to share with our readers? Plastics News would love to hear from you. Email your letter to Editor at [email protected]

    Most Popular
    1
    California passes strictest plastics law in US, with EPR and recycling targets
    2
    PS prices jump in June, more increases on horizon
    3
    Hillenbrand makes another deal in plastics machinery
    4
    IRS provides guidance for how excise taxes will impact resin pricing
    5
    Eastman eyes ‘several options' for chemical recycling plant sites
    SIGN UP FOR TO RECEIVE THESE EMAILS AND ENEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Get our newsletters

    Staying current is easy with Plastics News delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge.

    Subscribe today

    Subscribe to Plastics News

    Subscribe now
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram

    Plastics News covers the business of the global plastics industry. We report news, gather data and deliver timely information that provides our readers with a competitive advantage.

    Contact Us

    1155 Gratiot Avenue
    Detroit MI 48207-2997

    Customer Service:
    877-320-1723

    Resources
    • About
    • Staff
    • Editorial Calendar
    • Media Kit
    • Data Store
    • Digital Edition
    • Custom Content
    • People
    • Contact
    • Careers
    • Sitemap
    Related Crain Publications
    • Sustainable Plastics
    • Rubber News
    • Urethanes Technology
    • European Rubber Journal
    • Tire Business
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Copyright © 1996-2022. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Processor News
        • Injection Molding
        • Blow Molding
        • Film & Sheet
        • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
        • Rotomolding
        • Thermoforming
        • Recycling
      • Suppliers
        • Machinery
        • Materials
        • Molds/Tooling
        • Product news
        • Design
      • More News
        • Mergers & Acquisitions
        • Sustainability
        • Public Policy
        • Material Insights Videos
        • Numbers that Matter
      • Digital Edition
      • End Markets
        • Automotive
        • Packaging
        • Medical
        • Consumer Products
        • Construction
      • Special Reports
        • CEO Issue
        • Diversity
        • Best Places to Work
          • 2022 winners
        • Processor of the Year
        • Rising Stars
        • Women Breaking the Mold
      • Newsletters
      • Resin pricing news
      • Videos
    • Opinion
      • The Plastics Blog
      • Kickstart
      • One Good Resin
      • BRICS and Plastics
      • All Things Data
      • Viewpoint
      • From Pillar to Post
      • Perspective
      • Mailbag
      • Fake Plastic Trees
    • Shop Floor
      • Blending
      • Compounding
      • Drying
      • Injection Molding
      • Purging
      • Robotics
      • Size Reduction
      • Structural Foam
      • Tooling
      • Training
    • Events
      • K Show Livestream
      • Plastics News Events
        • Plastics News Executive Forum
        • Injection Molding & Design Expo
        • Plastics News Caps & Closures
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
        • Plastics in Automotive
      • Industry Events
      • Injection Molding & Design Expo
      • Livestreams/Webinars
        • Reuters Responsible Business Europe 2022
        • Reifenhäuser Technologies Livestreams
      • Editorial Livestreams
        • Polymer Points Live
        • Numbers that Matter Live
        • Plastics in Politics Live
        • Sustainable Plastics Live
      • Ask the Expert
      • Plastics News Events Library
        • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
        • Plastics in Healthcare Library
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
      • Processor of the Year submissions
    • Resin Prices
      • All Resins
      • Commodity TPs
        • Historic Commodity Thermoplastics
      • High Temp TPs
        • Historic High Temp Thermoplastics
      • ETPs
        • Historic Engineering Thermoplastics
      • Thermosets
        • Historic Thermosets
      • Recycled Plastics
        • Historic Recycled Plastics
    • Rankings & Data
      • Injection Molders
      • Blow Molders
      • Film Sheet
      • Thermoformers
      • Pipe Profile Tubing
      • Rotomolders
      • Mold/Toolmakers
      • LSR Processors
      • Recyclers
      • Compounders - List
      • Association - List
      • Plastic Lumber - List
      • All
    • Directory
    • Custom
      • Sponsored Content
      • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
      • Conair Sponsored Content
      • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
      • ENGEL Sponsored Content
      • White Papers
      • Classifieds
        • Place an Ad
        • Sign up for Early Classified