Celadon Group, Inc., Indianapolis, Ind., and its 25 affiliate entities filed voluntary petitions for relief under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.  Celadon also announced plans to shut down all of its business operations, effective immediately. This shut down does not include the Taylor Express business, Hope Mills, N.C., which will continue to operate.

"We have diligently explored all possible options to restructure Celadon and keep business operations ongoing, however a number of legacy and market headwinds made this impossible to achieve," says Paul Svindland, chief executive officer. "Celadon has faced significant costs associated with a multi-year investigation into the actions of former management, including the restatement of financial statements.  When combined with the enormous challenges in the industry and our significant debt obligations, Celadon was unable to address our significant liquidity constraints through asset sales or other restructuring strategies. Therefore, in conjunction with our lenders, we concluded that Celadon had no choice but to cease all operations and proceed with the orderly and safe wind down of our operations through the Chapter 11 process."