Spokane restaurateurs Thomas K. Finnerty and his brother, Brian P. Finnerty, each have filed for personal bankruptcy liquidation in the Eastern Washington district of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court.


The Finnerty brothers are co-owners of Spokane Sports Bar Inc., which operates Finnertys Red Lion Sports Bar & Barbeque, at 126 N. Division. They also were co-owners of Finnertys at the Arena LLC, which had operated the now defunct Finnertys at the Arena restaurant and lounge, at the northwest corner of Boone and Howard.


Thomas Finnerty listed personal assets of about $465,000 and liabilities totaling about $1.3 million in his Chapter 7 filing here on March 26. Brian Finnerty, meanwhile, listed personal assets of about $325,000 and liabilities totaling more than $1.1 million in his separate Chapter 7 filing here on the same day.


Attempts to reach the Finnerty brothers and their attorney, John Bury, were unsuccessful.


Nearly all of the liabilities the brothers listed are the same in each of their filings, and are debts associated with Finnertys at the Arena LLC. Finnertys at the Arena closed in May 1997, after only nine months of operation, due to financial difficulties, Thomas Finnerty had said at that time.


Finnertys at the Arena LLC filed for bankruptcy liquidation in U.S. Bankruptcy Court here Jan. 15. The case was closed in February after the court-appointed trustee declared that there were no assets that could be sold to pay creditors.


The Finnertys still own and operate Finnertys Red Lion, which they have operated for the last eight years.


According to the bankruptcy filings, the Finnertys largest secured creditor is Garco Construction, of Spokane, which both brothers say is owed about $424,000; followed by the Washington state Department of Revenue, which is owed a total of $76,500 in secured claims. The department is owed an additional $38,600 in unsecured claims, the filings say.


Besides their personal bankruptcies, the Finnertys also are involved in other court cases, which still are pending. Produce Supply Co. has filed a collection suit against Finnertys at the Arena LLC; Wilgeo IV, a Bellevue-based partnership that owned the building in which Finnertys at the Arena had been located, has filed a collection suit against Finnertys at the Arena LLC; and Spokane Merchants Association has filed a collection suit against Finnertys at the Arena LLC.