Condo owners reject $2M offer to settle Bush library lawsuit

[Cheesesteak]

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent ... 8a801.html

[jtstang]

That's a lot of money to offer guys who "don't have a case" as many of the pundits here have theorized....

[EastStang]

The article didn't say when the offer was made. There have been some anecdotal comments that Vodicka turned down $1 Million way back before he started losing motion after motion. Pigs get slaughtered. He probably figured if he continued to be a pain, he'd get more money. It would be interesting to know who leaked the $1 Million offer to the DMN. It sounds like SMU's new attorney was responding to a question about confirming the existence of the offer. If Vodicka leaked the existence of the offer it would have been for only one reason to make people think that there is substance to his case. Of course if SMU's legal team leaked the existence of the offer, it would be to show that Vodicka and Taffel are being greedy. Also, perhaps someone is trying to poison the jury pool so that this case gets transferred to perhaps Houston.

[jtstang]

If the was case was that meritless, SMU would have an MSJ filed and heard and be done with it. It sounds like Judge Lowy is going to send this case to trial. The jury can hear how SMU strong-armed those condo owners when they knew the land was worth a lot more because of the Bush liberry and then manipulated the by-laws in its own favor, as well as how SMU just wanted to buy more land for campus expansion and played by fairly and by the rules and paid reasonable market value, and then those twelve typical Dallas County citizens can decide what really happened.

[Longtime]

Why do you think the condo owners hired Royce West onto their legal team? Obviously, not for his legal expertise.

[jtstang]

Given the potential jury pool, it was a savvy move.

[expony18]

Lanier is going to dominate

edit:
http://thesuperficial.com/2008/11/miley ... oes_of.php

[smupony94]

Lanier is going to dominate

edit:
http://thesuperficial.com/2008/11/miley ... oes_of.php

Wonder how much she will charge on the side for a lap dance or will that be a raffle prize given away or maybe purchased via silent auction. It is a fund raiser after all.

[Horse Hockey]

Lanier didn't go back into chambers on Tuesday with the rest of the attorneys. Lanier stayed in the courtroom and spoke to three media folks and volunteered the settlement information.

There are pending cross motions for summary judgment on the title issues in Peruna Property's claim for trespass to try to try title to be heard in April.

If the title issues go against Peruna, there may not be a lot for Lanier to dominate since the case becomes Peruna as only a defendant who bulldozed the jointly owned property. Hard to argue against haste makes waste.

[EastStang]

Being from Virginia where there is no such thing as summary judgment except in theory, if there are facts involved then summary judgment can't be granted. Given that one of the allegations is fraud that would seem to indicate a fact intensive case which a jury would need to sort out. Now if Texas is more like the Federal System in which discovery answers tend to permit Summary judgment, then there is hope that the case gets bounced.

[PK]

That's a lot of money to offer guys who "don't have a case" as many of the pundits here have theorized....

It's probably a lot less than what the attorney fees will end up being just to deal with a nuisance lawsuit. I would wager a bet that they have already spent that much just getting to where they are now.

FWIW...I heard many years ago, long before Bush was elected Prez, that SMU was concerned that the condos might be acquired by some one wanting to build a multistory office building or other type commercial complex and thus cut off SMU's ability to expand the campus to the east.

[jtstang]

That's a lot of money to offer guys who "don't have a case" as many of the pundits here have theorized....

It's probably a lot less than what the attorney fees will end up being just to deal with a nuisance lawsuit. I would wager a bet that they have already spent that much just getting to where they are now.

You would win that bet going away. Nothing happens where the lawyers don't make money.

[smupony94]

That's a lot of money to offer guys who "don't have a case" as many of the pundits here have theorized....

It's probably a lot less than what the attorney fees will end up being just to deal with a nuisance lawsuit. I would wager a bet that they have already spent that much just getting to where they are now.

You would win that bet going away. Nothing happens where the lawyers don't make money.

If they aren't making money they can't post on PF

[jtstang]

Yes but there are a lot of professions cursed with that affliction.

[abezontar]

Why do you think the condo owners hired Royce West onto their legal team? Obviously, not for his legal expertise.

Texas Procedural rule which allows a trial to be postponed if a member of the legal team is a member of the Texas Legislature and the Legislature is in session.