A federal appeals court on Thursday rejected Chesapeake Energy Corp’s effort to avoid having to pay $438.7 million, including interest, to investors in a bond dispute. By a 3-0 vote, a panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan said the payout was justified after the natural gas company had waited too long to tell bondholders of its plan to redeem $1.3 billion of their debt six years early. The court agreed with bond trustee Bank of New York Mellon Corp that hedge funds and other holders of Chesapeake’s 6.775 percent notes maturing in 2019 were contractually entitled to a special “make-whole” price because of the early redemption. “To hold otherwise would frustrate the noteholders’ legitimate expectations regarding their rights,” the court said. The May 2013 redemption was intended to help Chesapeake reduce a debt burden that the Oklahoma City-based […]