MLB player agent Jeff Borris filed and then withdrew a lawsuit against agents at the Beverly Hills Sports Council, where he was a partner for more than 20 years, up until January. Borris filed a lawsuit in L.A. Superior Court on March 18 against BHSC partner Rick Thurman and agent Nate Heisler, alleging they defamed him after he voluntarily relinquished his ownership interest in the agency, where he had worked since the late '80s. Borris then voluntarily withdrew his lawsuit on March 30. Borris in an e-mail wrote, “As of the first of the year, I became 'of counsel' to BHSC. I still represent players in conjunction with BHSC and enjoy working with the entire BHSC staff. By having a change in role and not being at BHSC on a day-to-day basis, I have more time to spend with my family. What was in the media about a lawsuit was nothing more than a misunderstanding.” Borris declined further comment. The lawsuit alleged that defendants “undertook a smear campaign” to discredit Borris. The complaint noted that as part of that alleged campaign, defendants “falsely communicated” to at least one of his clients that he was “fired” from BHSC and that he was a “compulsive gambler.” Thurman, in a telephone interview last week, said that Borris has “no title with the company and is no longer with the company” as of the beginning of '15. Thurman said that BHSC and Borris represent some minor-league baseball players together, although he did not name them. Borris counts Orioles P Darren O’Day and Cardinals 1B Mark Reynolds among his clients. Thurman and Dan Horwits currently are the only two partners in BHSC, which moved from Beverly Hills to nearby Santa Monica in January. Under MLBPA regulations, agents are precluded from bringing lawsuits against each other and must submit their disputes to an arbitration process, overseen by the union.
FORMER BHSC PARTNER WON ARBITRATION CASE: Dan Lozano, who had been one of the four BHSC partners before leaving in '10 to form his own firm, recently won an arbitration case which was brought against him by his former partners and overseen by the union. BHSC was seeking more than $40M in damages from Lozano, but the three arbitrators dismissed that claim and Lozano won his counterclaim. Sources said the Lozano decision came down in early March, days before Borris filed his defamation suit against Thurman and Heisler. Borris would not comment on the Lozano arbitration, noting that it was confidential. Thurman, asked if Borris’ lawsuit had anything to do with Lozano winning the case against BHSC, said, “Nothing at all.”
