Browns Owner Jimmy Haslam Under Investigation By Federal Officials For Bribery

Owner of the Browns Jimmy Haslam is under investigation following allegations made by Berkshire Hathaway, owned by Warren Buffett, that he tried to buy out Pilot Travel Center employees in order to increase earnings this year and raise the company’s sale price.

Browns Owner Jimmy Haslam Under Investigation By Federal Officials For Bribery

During a hearing in a legal suit between Haslam and Berkshire, a lawyer representing Pilot disclosed that Haslam is under investigation by federal authorities, as Bloomberg reported earlier this week.

In 2017, Berkshire started purchasing Pilot, a network of petrol stations and truck stops; as of right now, the corporation controls 80% of Pilot.

The remaining 20% of Pilot may be sold by the Haslam family once a year at a price equal to ten times the prior year’s EBIT (Earnings Before Interest and Taxes), a typical measure of profit.

At the moment, Berkshire owns 80% of Pilot Travel Centers. For an extra $8.2 billion this year, Buffett’s business expanded its stake in Pilot to 80% from its initial 38.6% purchase in 2017 for $2.76 billion.

Starting on January 1, 2024, the Haslam family will have the yearly option to sell Berkshire the remaining 20% of the company. Each year at the beginning, the Haslams are given sixty days to determine whether to sell their remaining twenty percent.

Haslam launched a legal complaint against Buffett in October, claiming that Berkshire attempted to lower the value of Pilot’s remaining 20% in order to lower the price Berkshire would have to pay to purchase the remaining shares. According to the Haslam family, Berkshire attempted to do that through accounting adjustments.

Pilot founder Jim Haslam’s son Haslam did not reply to a request from Bloomberg on the alleged government inquiry, but when the charges initially surfaced, his lawyers angrily refuted them.

“We called Berkshire’s allegations wild inventions in our opposition brief,” Haslam family attorney Anitha Reddy said earlier this month, according to the Associated Press. “I don’t think we could have been clearer that we dispute them. And if there is any doubt in Berkshire’s mind, we think they’re false and we intend to defeat them on whatever schedule the court orders.”

Vice Chancellor Morgan Zurn said at a hearing on Wednesday that Berkshire was not permitted to utilize the bribery claims as part of a “unclean hands” defense at an accelerated trial that is scheduled for next month. Adding that there is no “immediate and proper nexus” between the bribery accusations and Pilot’s underlying claims, she stated that any relevant depositions would not be permitted.

Zurn said that she could reject Berkshire’s request to change its replies and defenses even if she granted Pilot’s requests to limit Berkshire’s arguments.

Haslam bought a quarter of the Milwaukee Bucks earlier this year from New York businessman Marc Lasry.

What does Jimmy Haslam own?

He has a share in the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA), the Columbus Crew of Major League Soccer (MLS), and the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). His wife Dee also owns these teams. As the Crew’s owner, Haslam has taken home two MLS Cup Championships (2020 and 2023) to date. Tennessee, Knoxville, United States.

What percentage of the Bucks does Jimmy Haslam own?

The purchase of a quarter of the Milwaukee Bucks by Jimmy and Dee Haslam has received formal approval from the NBA.

 

 

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