A group of prepetition vendors that the debtor asserts are so vital to the debtor’s operations that payment of their claims at or near the beginning of the debtor’s Chapter 11 case is justified—a huge advantage to those vendors if the court agrees with the debtor’s position because normally the debtor cannot pay prepetition claims until after confirmation of its Chapter 11 plan.
Synonym: Fortunate Sons.
See also Doctrine of Necessity.