Most of what you say is correct except that some companies, especially those with positive net equity, where the commons survive Chap 11 in whole or in a diluted position. It is an uphill battle (with an honest judge) for a company to be able to cancel the commons in total when true equity exists....that's called fraud!!! The common stockholders own that equity. Currently, MESA has a positive net equity of approximately $92,358,000 or $.63 per share.