The Cour de Cassation, France's highest appeals court, has overturned an earlier decision by a lower court against an extension of the protection plan proposed by the owners of Paris skyscraper Coeur Defense.

The 182,000 m2 complex, which was acquired by Lehman Brothers and Atemi for EUR 2.1 bn in July 2007, has been at the centre of a conflict between the owners and the debtholders since Hold, the special purpose vehicle controlling Coeur Defense, filed for court protection in September 2008.

The restored protection plan grant owners a further two years until 2014 for the repayment of a CMBS vehicle worth a total of EUR 1.5 bn. The plan also allows Lehman Brothers and Atemi to continue to manage Coeur Defense and collect rent until then.

As a result of the court's new decision, creditors will no longer have the right to seize the property in case owners don't meet payment obligations.

Lawyers for EuroTitrisation, the managing company of FCT Windermere, the securitisation vehicle, said that 'EuroTitrisation will proceed with a thorough analysis of these decisions and of their consequences and will assert the interests of the creditor which it represents before the court of appeal of referral'.

Coeur Defense, which is currently 20% vacant, has shed almost 50% of its value over the past two years.