The Providence Journal reports that the state of Rhode Island has hired Steven J. Johnson of SJ Advisors to study the potential impact of defaulting on the bonds related to the $75 million 38 Studios loan. Rhode Island lawmakers earmarked $50,000 in the current fiscal budget to study the potential financial impact that might occur if the state defaults on the loan guarantee greenlit by the RI Economic Development Corp.

At the end of February we reported that Rhode Island State Senator James C. Sheehan planned to seek access to depositions and documents related to the state's court case against Curt Schilling's 38 Studios.

It looks like Maureen Gurghigian, a senior vice president for the Lincoln office of financial firm First Southwest, will have to undergo more questioning in the ongoing lawsuit between Rhode Island Commerce Corporation (formerly known as the RI Economic Development Corp., or EDC) and bankrupt game developer 38 Studios, according to the Providence Journal.

Rhode Island State Senator James C. Sheehan released a statement announcing that, as the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Government Oversight, he has formally requested that the committee be provided with copies of all documents (depositions and exhibits) relating to the civil lawsuit against 38 Studios.

The Rhode Island Commerce Corp. (the new name for the RI Economic Development Corp.) voted on Monday behind closed doors on legal matters related to its lawsuit against 38 Studios and a law recently passed in both houses of the state assembly that would allow it to settle the matter out of court.

Columnist Russell J. Moore (clearly not a fan of Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Chafee and his Director of Administration) says in a new column that Richard Licht, the governor's Director of Administration, finally admitted publicly that the Governor's office "wasn't watching 38 Studios" after the Economic Development Corp. greenlit a $75 million loan and before it eventually defaulted on that loan and went bankrupt.

Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Chafee has quickly signed into law a bill that was passed yesterday in the RI House (and earlier in the week in the RI Senate) that will make it easier for the state to settle its lawsuit with 38 Studios and principles involved in the $75 million loan guarantee that enticed Curt Schilling to move his game development studio to Providence in 2010.

The Rhode Island House has approved a bill that will make it easier for the state to settle its lawsuit with Curt Schilling, other executives from 38 Studios, and others involved in the deal that could end up costing the state upwards of $100 - $110 million in the long-term. The RI Senate approved its own version of the bill earlier this month. With both houses of the State Assembly passing the bill, there's no doubt that Governor Lincoln Chafee will sign it into law the minute it crosses his desk (his administration pushed the legislature to pass the bill as quickly as possible).

According to a Go Local Providence report, one of the defining issues in the campaign that could hurt Rhode Island Attorney General (D) Peter F. Kilmartin is the 38 Studios loan deal, which he voted for while in the General Assembly.

Sony Online Entertainment president John Smedley offered some harsh words for current Rhode Island governor Lincoln Chafee (I), who he painted as a saboteur in the last days before 38 Studios went bankrupt.

Adding a new complication to the case for the state of Rhode Island in its lawsuit against former Red Sox pitcher and 38 Studios founder Curt Schilling is news today that he has been diagnosed with cancer. Schilling, who is now serving as an on-air sports analyst for ESPN, told the network about his condition today, though he did not go into any detail about what kind of cancer he has.

It should come as no shock that the Rhode Island Senate today unanimously approved legislation that encourages out-of-court settlements in the 38 Studios lawsuit. The news comes from a syndicated Associated Press report. The bill, which was floated to lawmakers by Governor Lincoln Chafee's office earlier this month and supported by the lead attorney representing the Rhode Island Economic Corp.

According to an Associated Press report, lawmakers in the state of Rhode Island are doing everything they can to fast track a bill that would make it easier for the Economic Development Corp. to settle its lawsuit against executives from 38 Studios and other parties being sued on behalf of the state.

Attorney Max Wistow, the lawyer who is representing the Economic Development Corp. in its lawsuit against 38 Studios executives and others involved in the deal, said yesterday before a Rhode Island Senate committee that money that could be recouped by the state is instead being spent on the ongoing court battle by multiple parties. He also claimed that 11 of the defendants in the case have "insurance policies that pay defense costs out of the policy limits."

"The resources to recover in the lawsuit are every day diminishing," he told Rhode Island lawmakers.

Max Wistow, the attorney representing the Rhode Island Commerce Corp. (formerly known as the Rhode Island Economic Development Corp.) said that he has had settlement talks in the case against 38 Studios. He says that the Rhode Island General Assembly should pass a new bill announced last week that encourages out-of-court resolutions.

"There's been enough discussion to make it clearly worthwhile to have the legislation passed," he said.

Wistow would not discuss who specifically he might have been talking to about a settlement.

The attorney for former Red Sox Pitcher and 38 Studios founder Curt Schilling says that new documents that were previously withheld by the state of Rhode Island prove that the lawsuit against her client are baseless.

On Wednesday legislation was introduced in the Rhode Island General Assembly that would resolve the the $75 million loan guarantee to 38 Studios and subsequent debt when the company defaulted on the loan and filed for bankruptcy in 2012. The proposal, which was submitted at the request of Governor Lincoln Chafee's administration, deals with Chapter 42-64-40 of the state's General Laws, which covers "court-approved settlements."

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has subpoenaed the Rhode Island Commerce Corporation for information related to the state’s $75-million investment in former Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling's 38 Studios video-game company, according to a Providence Journal report.

The governor of Rhode Island said that he isn't surprised that many of the 38 Studios assets remained unsold after an online auction earlier this month failed to find a buyer. At a press conference today Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee told the press that Schilling's flagship MMO game "Project Copernicus," was a "a lot of junk."

The Rhode Island General Assembly is on recess until January, and while lawmakers in the state have kicked around a lot of contentious issues in the days leading up to the break, one committee has been silent since its last meeting in September: the House Oversight Committee’s review of the 38 Studios loan deal.

The Big Huge Games' assets that are part of the 38 Studios asset auction have fetched $320,000, according to a report on Joystiq. Sold as part of two lots, the Big Huge Games trademark was sold, along with the Rise of Legends and Rise of Nations strategy game properties. Details on who purchased these assets has not been disclosed.

Yesterday we reported that no one bid on a $50,000 proposal put out by the state of Rhode Island to examine its options if it decided not to pay back the debt related to the $75 million loan given to Curt Schilling's 38 Studios. The state is on the hook for over $90 million or more (depending on who you ask) related to the deal. Well it turns out that - as of yesterday - one firm has stepped forward.

Last summer lawmakers passed a measure to make an initial $2.5-million payment to the investors who purchased the state-backed bonds that financed Schilling’s now-bankrupt video-game company, 38 Studios.

According to a brief report on Boston.com from the Associated Press, the auction to sell off what remains of the 38 Studios intellectual property assets will happen today via a telephone auction.

The company handling the auction, Heritage Global Partners, has declined to estimate the IP’s worth, and 38 Studios receiver Richard Land says initial bids that were due last week are being kept confidential.

A new WPRI 12 Eyewitness News poll shows that a majority of Rhode Islanders have no problem defaulting on the bonds used to secure 38 Studios a $75 million loan in 2010. The company founded by Curt Schilling would later default on the loan payments and leave the state with a debt of $90 - $100 million.

State Senator Dawson Hodgson (R-North Kingstown) is putting forth legislation today to renew his push to create an independent commission to investigate Rhode Island's investment in 38 Studios, which ultimately left the state on the hook for $100 million after Curt Schilling's game studio went bankrupt in 2012. Hodgson promises to create a bipartisan coalition to bring the bill to a vote early in the 2014 General Assembly session.

Heritage Global Partners will hold an auction to sell off the intellectual property of 38 Studios and Big Huge Games. The auction is being held on behalf of Richard J. Land, the Rhode Island court-appointed receiver, on December 11. The deadline for submitting initial bids is 5 pm EST on December 4.

Earlier in the month we reported that the attorney appointed by the Rhode Island courts to sell off the intellectual property owned by 38 Studios planned to delay an auction that was set for later this week. The online auction to sell off the current and future rights to the MMO Project Copernicus, sequel rights to Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, and rights for Big Huge Games franchises including Rise of Nations, Rise of Legends and Catan, as well as game engine technology, was set for Nov. 13 - 14.

The attorney in charge of selling off the remaining intellectual property of 38 Studios to recoup money in the hopes of paying down the $100 million debt the state of Rhode Island was left with when Curt Schilling's game studio defaulted on a $75 million loan in 2010 says that he wants to delay the auction scheduled for later this month. Attorney Richard J. Land, who was appointed by a R.I.

Because the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation (EDC) did a pretty lousy job of keeping records during the whole 38 Studios $75 million loan guarantee deal, the agency charged with spurring economic growth in the state will be installing tracking software to keep tabs on its employees.