Bargain-hunting fashionistas may not be losing a popular shopping destination after all, despite the fact that the company had declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Delaware earlier last year. Filene's Basement filed for Chapter 11 last year in a Delaware bankruptcy court. Now, FB Liquidating Estate, the bankrupt company previously known as Filene's Basement, had its bankruptcy plan approved by a bankruptcy court earlier this month.

The plan approved a liquidation of Filene's, where Filene's would pay unsecured creditors approximately 75 cents to the dollar from sale of its assets last June to an affiliate of Syms Corp. (Nasdaq: SYMS).

Filene's Basement filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on May 4, 2009. Since then, the Syms affiliate took over almost all of Filene's assets on June 18, 2009.

Although there are not any Filene's locations in the San Diego area, the case presents interesting questions for San Diego bankruptcy attorneys, particularly in the scope of corporate bankruptcies. Bankruptcy is a federal practice area, which means that the laws do not differ from state to state.

A Chapter 11 is essentially a reorganization. Although Filene's sold substantially all of its assets to another organization, the stores will still remain open.

They will just be operated under new management.

And so, in the Filene's saga, bankruptcy may have saved the parent company from paying all of its creditors in full, as the court approved their payment plan this January. Thus, there is good news for the company.

And for discount fashionistas, the good news continues, as the east coast fashion chain will remain open for business.