Quick answer: If you represent someone injured at a Children’s Place or Gymboree store, your case against the retailer is frozen by the automatic stay that took effect on November 8, 2026. You can usually get it moving again through a stay relief stipulation or motion in the New Jersey bankruptcy court, typically limited to insurance proceeds. Meanwhile, keep pressing any non-debtor defendants, find out what insurance applies and how any self-insured retention works, and file a proof of claim for your client before the bar date.
Where the case stands
The Children’s Place, Inc. and 13 affiliates filed Chapter 11 on November 8, 2026 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey, Case No. 26-22682 (SLM), before Judge Stacey L. Meisel. The company is selling substantially all of its assets, with bids due December 9, 2026 and a closing targeted for the end of December. For a personal injury lawyer, that combination matters: the stay stops your case now, and the sale means the operating business will soon belong to someone who generally will not be liable for your client’s injury.
Step 1: Expect a suggestion of bankruptcy, and stop proceeding against the debtor
Defense counsel will typically file a suggestion of bankruptcy or notice of stay in your state or federal case. From the filing date forward, discovery, motion practice, and trial against The Children’s Place entities are stayed. Actions taken in violation of the stay are generally void, even if the court or opposing counsel did not object at the time, so do not try to finish a deposition or obtain a default.
Step 2: Keep the case moving against everyone else
The stay generally protects only the debtors. Property owners, mall operators, property managers, security companies, and cleaning or maintenance contractors are usually not protected and can remain in the case. In some cases debtors ask the bankruptcy court to extend the stay to non-debtors, usually where the debtor must indemnify them, so watch the docket.
Many retail leases require the tenant to name the landlord as an additional insured. If your client sued the property owner, that owner may tender the defense to the retailer’s insurer, which can give your client access to the same coverage without waiting on the bankruptcy.
Step 3: Find out what insurance actually pays
Most stay relief agreements in injury cases limit recovery to insurance, so the policy terms drive the value of the claim. Request the declarations pages and the primary and excess policies. Pay close attention to any self-insured retention or large deductible. If the insurer pays only after the retailer covers the first layer of loss, and the retailer is in bankruptcy, that first layer may be paid only as an unsecured claim, often at a small percentage. A stipulation that limits your client to “available insurance” without addressing the retention can leave a gap you did not intend.
Step 4: Stay relief by stipulation or motion
The quickest path is usually a stipulation with debtors’ counsel allowing the case to proceed in its original court, with any judgment or settlement collected from insurance and any excess treated as a claim in the bankruptcy. The stipulation is filed and approved by the bankruptcy court. If the debtors will not agree, you can file a motion for relief from the stay for cause under Section 362(d)(1). Courts in the Third Circuit generally weigh prejudice to the debtor and the estate, the balance of hardships, and the claimant’s likelihood of success on the merits.
Debtors in large retail cases sometimes ask the court to approve a uniform procedure for personal injury claims, such as a mediation program or a standing order on stay relief. If one is entered, it may control how and when your client’s case can proceed.
Step 5: File the proof of claim
Your client should file a proof of claim by the bar date even if stay relief is granted and the state case is moving. The claim protects any recovery above the insurance limits or within an uninsured retention. An unliquidated claim can be filed in an estimated amount, with a short description of the injury and the pending case. Personal injury claims are not tried in the bankruptcy court; under 28 U.S.C. Section 157(b)(5) they are tried in the federal district court or, after stay relief, in the original forum.
Two timing traps
First, the statute of limitations. Section 108(c) of the Bankruptcy Code extends a limitations period against the debtor that would otherwise expire during the case until 30 days after the stay ends. It does not extend your deadline against non-debtor defendants. If you have an unfiled claim against a property owner or contractor, file it.
Second, injuries that occur after November 8, 2026. Stores remain open during the sale process, and an injury caused by the debtor’s operations after the filing may be an administrative expense claim, which has priority over ordinary unsecured claims. Those claims follow their own deadline, usually an administrative claims bar date.
Working with bankruptcy counsel
Most personal injury firms do not want to learn bankruptcy procedure for one defendant. We work alongside personal injury lawyers as bankruptcy co-counsel. You keep the client and the case. We negotiate the stay relief stipulation or file the motion, prepare the proof of claim and any administrative claim, and track the bar dates. As a New Jersey bankruptcy attorney team that also practices in Delaware, Pennsylvania, and Southern Florida, we appear regularly in the court where this case is pending. Our firm also represents vendors and landlords in the same case, so we follow the docket closely.
If you have a client with a claim against The Children’s Place or Gymboree, call Bankruptcy Attorney Co. at (856) 880-1010 or use the contact form on this page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can my personal injury case against The Children’s Place continue?
Not against the debtor without bankruptcy court approval. The automatic stay took effect on November 8, 2026. Most injury claimants get relief through a stipulation or motion that lets the case proceed in its original court, with recovery limited to insurance.
Does the bankruptcy stay my claims against the mall or property owner?
Usually not. The automatic stay generally protects only the debtors. Claims against non-debtor co-defendants can typically proceed, and a landlord named as an additional insured may tender the defense to the retailer’s insurer.
What is a self-insured retention and why does it matter?
It is the portion of a loss the insured must pay before the insurer pays. If the retailer is in bankruptcy, that portion may be paid only as an unsecured claim, so it should be addressed before agreeing to limit recovery to insurance.
Does my client need to file a proof of claim if we get stay relief?
Yes. The proof of claim protects any recovery above policy limits or within an uninsured retention. It should be filed by the bar date even if the state court case is proceeding.
Does the bankruptcy extend the statute of limitations?
Section 108(c) extends a deadline to sue the debtor until 30 days after the stay ends if it would otherwise expire during the case. It does not extend deadlines against non-debtor defendants.
About the Author
Jenny R. Kasen is the founding attorney of Bankruptcy Attorney Co., a boutique bankruptcy firm with offices in Wilmington, Delaware and Cherry Hill, New Jersey. She represents creditors and debtors before the U.S. Bankruptcy Courts for the District of Delaware, the District of New Jersey, the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and the Southern District of Florida. Her practice includes creditor-side work in large Chapter 11 cases, preference and adversary proceeding defense, and Chapter 7, 11, 13, and Subchapter V cases.
Disclaimer: This article provides general information about The Children’s Place, Inc. Chapter 11 case as it stood on November 9, 2026. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Court orders, deadlines, and the sale timeline can change quickly, so confirm current dates on the court docket or the claims agent’s case website, and speak with a lawyer about your specific situation. Attorney Advertising.