The U.S. Bankruptcy Court has given the go-ahead for Deloitte to acquire substantially all that remains of consulting firm BearingPoint's North American public services practice for $350 million.

As part of the deal, which was announced last month, Deloitte is assuming some of the bankrupt consultancy's liabilities.

PricewaterhouseCoopers also has agreed to buy BearingPoint's commercial services arm for $25 million and its Japanese business for $45 million.

BearingPoint, a spin-off of KPMG, filed for bankruptcy in February, with debts totaling $2.23 billion as of Sept. 30, 2008. The firm has been beset with debts from a string of acquisitions that went awry, along with accounting troubles and an investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The Deloitte acquisition was expected to close in May, subject to customary closing conditions, including the receipt of Hart-Scott-Rodino antitrust clearance. Deloitte will acquire most of BearingPoint's assets associated with projects in the federal sector, as well as certain projects in areas such as health care, emerging markets, state and local government services, and education. As part of the deal, up to approximately 4,250 BearingPoint employees will become Deloitte principals and employees. Deloitte will also be inheriting some prominent BearingPoint clients, including 15 cabinet-level departments in the federal government and 23 state governments.

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