Lehman expects plan of reorganization in 1st qtr

NEW YORK, Nov 18 - Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc <LEHMQ.PK> said on Wednesday that it expects to have an outline for a plan of reorganization ready by the end of the first quarter of next year.

The bankrupt investment firm is contending with more than 64,000 claims with a face amount value of more than $820 billion.

Lehman is meeting with claim teams regularly to better categorize the claims, the company said in a securities filing. Initial claim objections are expected to be filed in the next 30 to 45 days.

Financial reporting is improving and becoming more current, after the disruption caused by its abrupt bankruptcy filing in September 2008, the company said. It expects to report its June 30 balance sheet by Nov. 30.

An examiner overseeing the company's operations is expected to submit a report by Feb. 1, said Lehman in its filing.

LAWSUIT

Lawyers for the firm have filed a lawsuit against Barclays Capital <BARC.L> to claw back billions of dollars of excess profit from the firm's purchase last year of Lehman's U.S. brokerage business. Discovery is under way, according to the securities filing.

The lawsuit followed claims by Lehman lawyers in September that BarCap, the investment bank arm of Barclays Plc, received an $8.2 billion "windfall profit" from excess assets it took control of in the fire sale of Lehman's U.S. brokerage business in September 2008. [ID:nN1576688]

The case is In re: Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of New York, No. 08-13555.