A Laguna Hills firm under fire for...

A Laguna Hills firm under fire for marketing a skin-patch diet aid has filed for protection from creditors in bankruptcy court in Santa Ana, and company officials said the controversial “Le Patch” product line has been sold to an Arizona company. David Sterns, president of New Source Ltd., said the firm filed for protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code on Dec. 16. A court in November ordered that the companies stop selling the patch as a weight-loss aid approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The FDA has not approved the non-prescription sale of skin-patch technology. Sterns said New Source sold its patch business July 15 to a Phoenix company called V&T.; No such company was listed in Phoenix telephone directories. Officials from the FDA and the attorney general’s office could not be reached for comment.