[外電] Spirit: Belkin's suit is robbery
Spirit: Belkin's suit is robbery
By TIM TUCKER
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 03/22/06
Estranged owner Steve Belkin's recent contention that he should
be allowed to take control of the Hawks and Thrashers has drawn
a sharp rebuttal from the teams' other owners.
In their latest court filing, the other owners say Belkin's
reverse-buyout scenario "would result in nothing less than
judicially sanctioned theft of [their] interest in the Hawks,
Thrashers and Philips Arena."
The filing is a response to a motion by Belkin earlier this
month asking a Maryland court to declare that the other owners
failed to complete a buyout of his stake under the prescribed
timetable and that Belkin therefore "shall purchase all of
[their] interests" at cost.
In their response to what they call Belkin's "audacious claim,"
the other owners — principally Bruce Levenson, Ed Peskowitz
and Michael Gearon Jr. — contend that if the court were to allow
Belkin to buy them out at cost, it would be allowing him "to
effectively steal the franchises."
But the filing also says that if the group were to complete its
planned buyout of Belkin based on a recent appraisal it is
contesting, he would get a return "of nearly 1,100 percent" on
his investment.
Amid a bitter dispute last summer about the Hawks' trade for
guard Joe Johnson, Belkin's partners agreed to purchase his 30
percent stake in the teams for a price to be determined by a
series of up to three appraisals. Controversy over the appraisals
led the owners back to court in November, when Belkin filed suit
in Montgomery County (Md.) Circuit Court, and the quagmire seems
to deepen with each legal document.
The new filing by Levenson, Peskowitz and Gearon says a December
appraisal by J.P. Morgan Securities, retained by Belkin, values
the teams "absurd[ly]" higher than what they fetched on the open
market in 2004 — 178 percent higher, according to the filing.
The Hawks and Thrashers were sold in 2004 "for the lowest value
of any hockey or basketball team in the decade," but the appraisal
values them at "the highest price ever paid for an NBA team, an
NHL team and the operating rights to an arena," according to the
court filing. "And not for a venerable franchise such as the
Boston Celtics or the Detroit Red Wings, but for two franchises
that lose large sums of money every year and by every financial
and performance measure are at the bottom of their leagues."
The specific amount of the appraisal is not disclosed in court
documents. However, Time Warner publicly valued the sale of the
teams at $250 million, including assumption of debt, in 2004. The
178 percent increase cited in the court documents would raise the
value to $695 million, also including debt.
The latest filing by Belkin's estranged partners claims that,
based on the contested appraisal, Belkin would get a return "of
nearly 1,100 percent in 17 months." The court document does not
provide the amount he would get. But his investment is $11.7
million, according to previously filed documents, and an 1,100
percent return would yield a payout of about $140 million.
Belkin and the other owners have considerably less than the
announced $250 million purchase price invested. That is because
most of the announced price was accounted for by the assumption
of debt (including $142 million in Philips Arena bonds backed by
Hawks revenues) and other liabilities, as well as the value of a
small stake in the teams retained by Time Warner.
The J.P. Morgan appraisal, which Belkin argues should set the
final price for his stake, came in 60 percent higher than an
earlier appraisal by CitiGroup, a Belkin attorney said in court.
A Maryland judge ruled last month that Belkin was entitled to
retain the second appraiser because he was the first party to
object to the appraisal by CitiGroup, which he also retained.
One argument, among many, now before the court is whether
Belkin's JP Morgan appraisal, done before the judge's ruling,
is valid as the second appraisal or whether Belkin must get a
new second appraisal. Another argument is whether the other
owners missed the deadline for a third appraisal and breached
the buyout agreement so as to trigger Belkin's right to buy
them out at cost.
The court has not indicated when it will take up the latest
issues.
Belkin's partners insist they still intend to buy him out.
"At the time that all contested factual and legal issues in
the case are finally resolved, [they] most assuredly will
perform that obligation," according to their latest legal
filing.
Belkin has repeatedly said he will not comment until the legal
dispute is resolved.
資料來源
http://www.ajc.com/hawks/content/sports/hawks/stories/0322spirit.html
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