In a win for Saints and Pelicans Owner Tom Benson, federal court judge Jane Triche Milazzo today rejected resetting the date for when the teams would be valued as part of the ongoing trust litigation surrounding the teams. Valuing them based on what the clubs were worth two months ago versus 22 months ago would have caused a price spike, thereby making it far more expensive for Benson to buy back team shares from his three spurned heirs. Milazzo also soundly criticized the trustees for seeking to block Benson’s effort to take team shares away from the heirs and replace them with cash and promissory notes.
One of two trustees had asked the court to reset the date which the teams were valued from January '15-September '16, when Benson restructured the promissory notes to bring them into accordance with NFL rules. Milazzo rejected the request and chastised the trustees for seeking to block the asset transfer. The case is scheduled to go to trial Feb. 6. Milazzo’s order makes clear the only issue in that trial will be the value of the team shares the heirs own in trust and which Benson wishes to replace. However, many observers expect the case to settle before it gets to an open court room.
