Houston, Texas (CN) — In an abrupt turn late Wednesday, attorneys for conspiracy theorist Alex Jones filed a motion to start the liquidation process for Jones’ personal assets, which could include his share of ownership of his media platform InfoWars.
This latest development would see Jones’ bankruptcy case converted from Chapter 11 reorganization to Chapter 7 liquidation, amid rising pressure from his creditors and approaching court deadlines.
The bankruptcy case began in late 2022 amid the defamation cases against Jones in Connecticut and Texas. Jones was ordered to pay a combined $1.5 billion to the families of the victims for his false statements, after he falsely claimed that the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre in Connecticut was a hoax.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez, who is overseeing the bankruptcy cases, ruled in December 2023 that Jones could not use bankruptcy to avoid paying most of the damages to the families, leaving Jones under immense financial pressure as the case moved forward.
Jones’ team filed the motion just days after a similar request by the Connecticut families, who had asked the judge to convert the case against Free Speech Systems, the parent company of InfoWars, from Chapter 11 to Chapter 7.
Jones’ attorneys stated in their motion that “there is no reasonable prospect for successful reorganization” in this case, which has dragged on for almost two years with neither side coming to an agreement on a reorganization plan.
“Furthermore,” Jones’ attorneys wrote, “[Jones] does not anticipate that a resolution may be reached with the other parties in interest sufficient to confirm a Chapter 11 plan of reorganization. Thus, drawing out the Chapter 11 process merely to complete the liquidation process would result in additional administrative expense with little benefit to [Jones]’s estate. Accordingly, [Jones] submits that this Chapter 11 case should be converted to Chapter 7.”
Jones had already begun liquidating some assets as part of the case, including the recent sale of his $2.8 million ranch in West Texas. But conversion to Chapter 7 would make that process much more streamlined and much more complete, since it would be aimed solely at liquidation, and would cost Jones much less in attorneys’ fees.
Prior to this latest motion, Jones had remained largely defiant in his public statements. Over the weekend, Jones went on a series of “emergency broadcasts” on InfoWars and spent hours ranting to his viewers. The Connecticut families’ attorneys cited these broadcasts in their June 2 motion, stating that they “only reinforce the significant need for conversion.”
Though Jones’ attorneys do not mention his public statements in their motion, they did cite the families’ motion as a factor behind their move to ask the judge to convert the case.
Lopez had already set a hearing for June 14. The judge will likely discuss both the personal case against Jones, in light of this latest motion, and the case against Free Speech Systems in the hearing. He had already expressed his intent to confirm a plan to reorganize FSS or dismiss the case if none is presented.
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