11/26/2025
🔥 Receiver Fires Back in Uncle Nearest Case
Says the Weavers’ emergency motion could “derail” the distillery’s stability and spark a wave of lawsuits. Here’s what he told the court:
In a filing on the eve of Thanksgiving, the court-appointed receiver overseeing Uncle Nearest has fired back at the Weavers’ emergency bid to lift the litigation freeze, calling their move “disruptive,” “premature,” and potentially harmful to the distillery’s future. In a sharply worded response, Receiver Phillip Young urges the court to reject the Weavers’ attempt to file counterclaims and reopen litigation, arguing that doing so now would derail efforts to stabilize the business and restore confidence among creditors and vendors.
Young says the Weavers’ motion—filed over his direct request not to—would force the receivership into immediate, costly litigation at a critical moment. He warns that allowing the Weavers to break the stay would set off a chain reaction, opening the door for other creditors and shareholders to launch their own lawsuits, overwhelming the estate and undermining the very purpose of the receivership.
The Receiver also directly challenges the Weavers’ core claims. He says he has found no evidence so far to support their contention that Farm Credit’s loan could be wiped out or significantly reduced through counterclaims. And he disputes the Weavers’ warning that competitors are already circling the company’s confidential data and trade secrets, noting that no data room exists yet and that all outreach is tightly controlled under NDAs. If the Weavers truly know the names of competitors who have received confidential information, he wants them to reveal their source immediately.
He also asserts that "while [I have] decreased expenses significantly, the business itself cannot support the cost of professional fees or even ongoing debt service."
While the Weavers argued the receivership is rushing toward a forced sale that could gut the brand’s value, Young insists he is pursuing both refinancing and sale options and remains in the early stages of gathering possibilities. Any proposal, he says, will come back to the court before any action is taken.
The response ends with a blunt warning: reopening litigation now would be “imprudent,” potentially “fatal” to the business, and a distraction from what should be everyone’s shared priority—maximizing the value of Uncle Nearest for creditors and shareholders.