Coach America Holdings Inc. was granted approval on a series of first day motions filed to help support its customers, employees, suppliers and business partners; to obtain interim financing authority; to maintain existing cash management systems; and to pay vendors and suppliers in the ordinary course of business, according to a company statement.

Judge Kevin Gross of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware granted the approval.

Coach America’s financial and operational stability going forward was enhanced through the granting of the following motions: payment of pre-petition and post-petition employee wages, salaries, business expenses and benefits, including medical, dental and life insurance benefits for current employees; interim approval for debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing of $30 million for use by the company to continue operations and purchase and pay for goods and services; and financing authority to pay certain pre-petition commitments that are necessary in the course of conducting business.

The DIP financing package was provided by a steering committee of Coach America’s existing senior lenders. The court has scheduled a final hearing on DIP financing on Friday, January 27.

“The approval of Coach America’s first-day motions by the court is an important initial step in the restructuring process and allows us to move forward with our normal operations, including paying vendors and suppliers in the ordinary course of business,” said George Maney, CEO of Coach America. “We remain focused on serving our customers and believe that the prompt approval of these ‘first day orders’ is good news for the company, as well as for our customers, employees, suppliers and business partners.”

As previously announced, Coach America Holdings Inc. and its U.S.-based subsidiaries filed to reorganize under Chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. More information about the Chapter 11 filing, which has been assigned case number 12-10010 (KG), is available on the Internet at www.coachamerica.com/restructure. The company is providing ongoing access to court documents, including today's orders, at www.bmcgroup.com/coachamerica.