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December 13, 2000 10:44 AM, EST

A trucking feud, ignited over the remains of a bankrupt motor carrier, has been settled by the parties without a shot being fired, but not before a Tennessee court became involved.

Forward Air ()of Greeneville, Tenn., won a competitive bid to purchase Dedicated Transportation Services for $10 million on Dec. 1, according to Forward Air President Bruce A. Campbell. After the purchase, bidding rival U.S. Xpress () seized about 40 truckloads of freight belonging to customers of the former DTS.

In addition to being a bidder for Dedicated, U.S. Xpress was also a creditor of the carrier. It was owed money by DTS in conjunction with the collapse of its parent company, Professional Transportation Group of Marietta, Ga.

SouthTrust Bank was the lead lender on PTG’s credit facility. It demanded payment of $16.3 million on the company’s loan Nov. 9. Because PTG was unable to either pay off its debt or renegotiate terms, the Birmingham, Ala.-based bank took possession of Dedicated and shut down another PTG subsidiary, Timely Transportation.

For the full story, see the Dec. 11 print edition of Transport Topics. .