UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

DISTRICT OF PUERTO RICO 

In re: 

THE FINANCIAL OVERSIGHT AND 

MANAGEMENT BOARD FOR PUERTO RICO, 

 as representative of 

THE COMMONWEALTH OF PUERTO RICO, et 

al., 

Debtors.1

PROMESA 

Title III 

No. 17 BK 3283-LTS 

(Jointly Administered) 

Re: ECF No. 20190-1 

DEBTORS’ INFORMATIVE MOTION REGARDING LIFT STAY 

NOTICES FOR THE PERIOD NOVEMBER 9, 2022 THROUGH JANUARY 6, 2023 

To the Honorable United States District Court Judge Laura Taylor Swain: 

The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (the “Commonwealth”), the Puerto Rico Sales Tax 

Financing Corporation (“COFINA”), the Puerto Rico Highways and Transportation Authority 

(“HTA”), the Employees Retirement System of the Government of the Commonwealth of Puerto 

Rico (“ERS”), the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (“PREPA”), and the Puerto Rico Public 

Buildings Authority (“PBA” and together with the Commonwealth, COFINA, HTA, ERS, and 

PREPA, the “Debtors”), as Title III debtors, by and through the Financial Oversight and 

Management Board for Puerto Rico (the “Oversight Board”), as the Debtors’ representative 

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 The Debtors in these Title III Cases, along with each Debtor’s respective Title III case number and the last four 

(4) digits of each Debtor’s federal tax identification number, as applicable, are the (i) Commonwealth of Puerto 

Rico (Bankruptcy Case No. 17-BK-3283- LTS) (Last Four Digits of Federal Tax ID: 3481); (ii) Puerto Rico Sales 

Tax Financing Corporation (“COFINA”) (Bankruptcy Case No. 17-BK-3284-LTS) (Last Four Digits of Federal 

Tax ID: 8474); (iii) Puerto Rico Highways and Transportation Authority (“HTA”) (Bankruptcy Case No. 17-BK3567-LTS) (Last Four Digits of Federal Tax ID: 3808); (iv) Employees Retirement System of the Government of 

the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (“ERS”) (Bankruptcy Case No. 17-BK-3566-LTS) (Last Four Digits of 

Federal Tax ID: 9686); (v) Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (“PREPA”) (Bankruptcy Case No. 17- BK4780-LTS) (Last Four Digits of Federal Tax ID: 3747); and (vi) Puerto Rico Public Buildings Authority (“PBA”) 

(Bankruptcy Case No. 19-BK-5523-LTS) (Last Four Digits of Federal Tax ID: 3801) (Title III case numbers are 

listed as Bankruptcy Case numbers due to software limitations). 

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pursuant to section 315(b) of the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act 

(“PROMESA”),2

 respectfully submit this informative motion (the “Motion”), in accordance with 

Paragraph III.Q of the Case Management Procedures (as defined below), informing the United 

States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico (the “Court”) of the status of Lift Stay Notices 

(as defined below) received for the period from November 9, 2022 through January 6, 2023. 

Background 

1. On June 2, 2017, the Court entered an order approving certain notice, case 

management, and administrative procedures for the Title III cases [ECF No. 249] (as amended, 

the “Case Management Procedures”), which was subsequently amended on June 6, 2017 to make 

certain non-substantive clarifications and amendments [ECF No. 262]. 

2. On August 17, 2017, the Court entered an order further amending the Case 

Management Procedures to, among other things, implement a protocol (the “Lift Stay Protocol”) 

for filing motions for relief from the automatic stay set forth in 11 U.S.C. §§ 362(a) and 922(a) 

(the “Title III Stay”) [ECF No. 1065]. Pursuant to the Lift Stay Protocol, a movant is required to 

(a) send notice (a “Lift Stay Notice”) to counsel to the Oversight Board and AAFAF to advise 

them of the movant’s intent to seek relief from the Title III Stay at least fifteen (15) business days 

prior to filing a motion seeking such relief (the “Lift Stay Notice Period”) and (b) meet and confer 

with the Debtors during the Lift Stay Notice Period. 

3. On September 13, 2017, the Debtors filed a motion to amend the Case Management 

Procedures [ECF No. 1299] to allow the Debtors (a) to enter into stipulations modifying or lifting 

the Title III Stay under Paragraph III.Q of the Case Management Procedures without further order 

of the Court and (b) in their discretion, to modify or lift the Title III Stay with respect to any 

2

 PROMESA is codified at 48 U.S.C. §§ 2101-2241. 

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prepetition ordinary course civil action against a Debtor without the filing of a Lift Stay Notice 

and further order of the Court. 

4. On October 24, 2017, the Court approved the Third Amended Notice, Case 

Management and Administrative Procedures [ECF No. 1512-1], which implemented the Debtors’ 

requested changes to the Lift Stay Protocol and requires the Debtors to file an omnibus lift stay 

motion every 60 days, identifying each modification to the Title III Stay agreed to by the Debtors 

during the relevant period and seeking retroactive Court approval of such modifications nunc pro 

tunc to the relevant modification date. 

5. The Court entered the following orders approving stipulations modifying the Title 

III Stay nunc pro tunc to the dates specified therein: 

Description ECF No. Date 

1st Omnibus Order 2191 12/28/17 

2nd Omnibus Order 2565 2/21/2018 

3rd Omnibus Order 2945 4/23/2018 

Supplement to 3rd Omnibus Order 2988 5/1/2018 

4th Omnibus Order 3326 6/10/2018 

5th Omnibus Order 3795 8/21/2018 

Supplement to 5th Omnibus Order 3940 9/17/2018 

6th Omnibus Order 4201 11/9/2018 

7th Omnibus Order 4550 12/21/2018 

8th Omnibus Order 5146 2/15/2019 

9th Omnibus Order 6448 4/22/2019 

10th Omnibus Order 7502 6/18/2019 

11th Omnibus Order 8499 8/19/2019 

12th Omnibus Order 8877 10/16/2019 

13th Omnibus Order 9595 12/16/2019 

14th Omnibus Order 10957 2/13/2020 

15th Omnibus Order 12838 4/16/2020 

16th Omnibus Order 13404 6/11/2020 

17th Omnibus Order 14010 8/11/2020 

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Description ECF No. Date 

18th Omnibus Order 14496 10/7/2020 

19th Omnibus Order 15362 12/7/2020 

20th Omnibus Order 15784 2/1/2021 

21st Omnibus Order 16281 4/1/2021 

22nd Omnibus Order 16856 6/1/2021 

23rd Omnibus Order 18372 10/4/2021 

24th Omnibus Order 19371 11/29/2021 

25th Omnibus Order 19902 1/26/2022 

26th Omnibus Order 20454 3/28/2022 

27th Omnibus Order 20940 5/23/2022 

6. The following informative motions were filed informing the Court that no approval 

of any stipulation modifying or lifting the Title III Stay was being sought for the applicable period: 

ECF No. Filing Date Period 

17433 7/20/2021 5/22/2021 – 7/20/2021 

21483 7/12/2022 5/14/2022 – 7/12/2022 

22131 9/09/2022 7/13/2022 – 9/09/2022 

22825 11/08/22 9/10/2022 – 11/08/2022 

7. On February 4, 2019, the Court entered an order [Case No. 17-3284, ECF Nos. 559 

& 561] confirming the Third Amended Title III Plan of Adjustment of the Puerto Rico Sales Tax 

Financing Corporation [ECF No. 17-3284, ECF No. 436], which became effective on February 

12, 2019. [Case No. 17-3284, ECF No. 587]. 

8. On January 18, 2022, the Court entered an order [Case No. 17-3283, ECF No. 

19813] confirming the Modified Eighth Amended Title III Joint Plan of Adjustment of the 

Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, et al. [Case No. 17-3283, ECF No. 19784] for the Commonwealth, 

ERS, PBA, which became effective on March 15, 2022. [Case No. 17-3283, ECF No. 20349]. 

9. On October 12, 2022, the Court entered an order [Case No. 17-3567, ECF No. 

1415] confirming the Modified Fifth Amended Title III Plan of Adjustment of the Puerto Rico 

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Highways and Transportation Authority [Case No. 17-3567, ECF No. 1404], which became 

effective on December 6, 2022 [Case No. 17-3567, ECF No. 1450]. 

Status of Lift Stay Notices Received 

for the Period November 9, 2022 to January 6, 2023 

10. Since implementing the Lift Stay Protocol on August 17, 2017, the Debtors have 

received over 368 Lift Stay Notices seeking relief from the Title III Stay to prosecute various 

prepetition actions. With respect to the Lift Stay Notices received to date, the Debtors and their 

advisors, in consultation with the Oversight Board, continue to carefully review and analyze 

outstanding requests and seek a consensual resolution, if possible. Accordingly, for the period 

from November 9, 2022 to January 6, 2023, the Debtors are not seeking approval of any stipulation 

modifying or lifting the Title III Stay. The Debtors will file an omnibus lift stay motion, or 

otherwise an informative motion, in connection with the 60-day period beginning January 7, 2023 

in accordance with the Lift Stay Protocol. 

[Remainder of Page Left Intentionally Blank] 

 

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 WHEREFORE the Debtors respectfully request that the Court take notice of the 

foregoing. 

Dated: January 6, 2023 

 San Juan, Puerto Rico 

Respectfully submitted, 

/s/ Ehud Barak 

Martin J. Bienenstock (admitted pro hac vice) 

Brian S. Rosen (admitted pro hac vice) 

Paul V. Possinger (admitted pro hac vice) 

Ehud Barak (admitted pro hac vice) 

PROSKAUER ROSE LLP

Eleven Times Square 

New York, NY 10036 

Tel: (212) 969-3000 

Fax: (212) 969-2900 

Attorneys for the Financial Oversight 

and Management Board as Representative 

for the Debtors

/s/ Hermann D. Bauer 

Hermann D. Bauer 

O’NEILL & BORGES LLC

250 Muñoz Rivera Ave., Suite 800 

San Juan PR 00918-1813 

Tel: (787) 764-8181 

Fax: (787) 753-8944 

Co-Attorneys for the Financial Oversight 

and Management Board as Representative 

for the Debtors

 

 

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