Judge approves bankruptcy plan giving Icahn control of Trump Entertainment, Taj Mahal casino

A judge in Delaware has approved Trump Entertainment Resorts' reorganization plan, which gives billionaire investor Carl Icahn control of the reorganized company and its Taj Mahal casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

As Trump's senior secured lender, Icahn is owed more than $290 million. The plan approved Thursday calls for him to exchange his debt for 100 percent of the reorganized company's stock.

Icahn has said he intends to keep open and refurbish the Taj, which employs some 3,000 people, and to retain its iconic Trump brand.

But the plan hinges on an appeals court rejecting a union's challenge to the judge's decision last year to terminate an expired labor contract, allowing the company to shed costly pension and health care obligations.