Financial Corp. of America in Irvine has...

Financial Corp. of America in Irvine has sought protection from its creditors by filing a Chapter 11 petition in bankruptcy court. The move, which had been expected, follows the government’s action Tuesday in which American Savings & Loan, FCA’s only major asset, was placed in receivership. According to court papers filed by the Los Angeles law firm of Stutman, Treister & Glatt, FCA has assets of about $12 million, not including a large note it held from American Savings, and debts of about $230 million, not including more than $1 billion in contested legal claims. FCA’s major creditors include three New York banks that are trustees for nearly $85 million of FCA’s publicly traded debentures.