Detroit's Lawyer: Bankruptcy Was Inevitable

Arguing in court

Detroit tried in good faith to negotiate an out-of-court settlement with creditors before declaring bankruptcy on July 18, even though it suspected that default was unavoidable, a lawyer for the city told a court on Friday.

"I think what the city did was they said: 'This is extremely difficult to achieve, but we're going to try anyway,'" city attorney Bruce Bennett, of Jones Day, said at a trial to determine if the city is eligible for bankruptcy.