The South Korean line filed under the section of the bankruptcy code dealing with international bankruptcy in US bankruptcy court in the district of Newark, New Jersey, according to various reports. If Chapter 15 protections are granted, the seventh-largest container line will be shielded from liens on its assets and arrests of its ships in the United States.

If Chapter 15 is granted, shippers will still have to secure release of their cargo from Hanjin or third parties that are demanding payment from the carrier. The stay — triggered by the filing — doesn’t force transportation providers, including marine terminals, longshoremen, motor carriers and pilots, to work with Hanjin, according to maritime attorneys.

As of Friday, three Hanjin ships were waiting to call the Los Angeles and Long Beach port complex, according to Marine Exchange of Southern California.  Terminal operators in Los Angeles and Long Beach are unloading all of the containers from the vessels. Containers that do not belong to Hanjin are processed according to normal procedures with terminal operators holding onto import loads in Hanjin containers.  Terminal operators will deliver the containers to truckers only if the beneficial cargo owners pay the terminal cargo-handling charges upfront.
(Source: Journal of Commerce)