A Nevada jury Tuesday returned a $70 million verdict against GOP megadonor Sheldon Adelson’s global casino and resort company, Las Vegas Sands, in a high-profile lawsuit over the company’s expansion into Macau.
Businessman Richard Suen sued Las Vegas Sands, claiming the company failed to pay him as promised for helping it secure a gaming license in the administrative region of China.
Continue ReadingThe trial is a second loss for Adelson: A jury found for Suen for nearly $50 million in 2008, but the Nevada Supreme Court overturned the verdict in 2010 after appeal.
Suen had sought $328 million.
Las Vegas Sands spokesman Ron Reese said the company plans to appeal.
“We believe there are compelling and sufficient grounds on which to appeal this verdict and we will do so aggressively,” Reese told POLITICO.
The trial began with testimony from Adelson himself, who told the jury that Suen did not deliver a license as promised since Las Vegas Sands ended up getting a sublicense from another company. Sands now owns several casinos in Macau.
“I know you don’t want to hear it, and I know Mr. Suen didn’t want to hear it … but I told him, he didn’t do anything and he wasn’t entitled to it. None of the efforts he put forth bore any fruit,” Adelson said on the stand, according to a trial stream provided by Courtroom Views Network.
Adelson at times butted heads with defense attorneys, often saying he “didn’t recall” specific events and making asides to the judge. Under questioning from his own attorneys, Adelson gave long biographical testimony, telling his “less than rags-to-riches story.”
The trial lasted more than five weeks. Jurors were given the case Friday.
After receiving the verdict, Clark County Courts District Judge Rob Bare praised the jury for their service and thoughtfulness in what he said was the longest trial he had presided over as a district judge.
CORRECTION: An original version of this story misstated the amount of the jury verdict. It is $70 million.
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