Lexington Insurance Co., a division of New York City-based American International Group Inc., has until July 13 to appeal the decision and until Friday to decide if it's going to seek a new trial. One of the defendant's attorneys, Herschel E. Richard Jr. of Cook, Yancey, King & Galloway in Shreveport tells GlobeSt.com that no decision has been made with regard to either legal recourse.
In March, Hollywood Casino Corp. was acquired by Penn National Gaming Inc. of Wyomissing, PA, but the lawsuit in the US District Court for the Western District of Louisiana remained in the hands of a Dallas team. Hollywood Casino's attorney, James S. Renard, partner with Bickel & Brewer in Dallas, says the case was filed because the all-risk policy insurer refused to pay $1.1 million in expenses incurred to expedite construction so the 403-room hotel and riverboat casino could open in 2000. Hollywood's attorneys also sought repair costs as well as pre- and post-opening lost profits.
Despite the stepped-up construction, the Hollywood Casino Shreveport missed an Oct. 9 soft opening during a traditionally slow season and had to go head-to-head with the competition with a Dec. 20 opening at the height of one of the gaming industry's busiest times. Hollywood Casino was forced to refinance due to the delayed opening, Renard tells GlobeSt.com.
The 18 floors of the hotel were up and the abutting riverboat casino work well under way when the tornadoes ripped through the area. The 229,000-sf entertainment facility, billed as a destination resort, has the largest dockside casino of Shreveport's five facilities, with 59,000 sf of gaming space for 1,422 slot machines and 66 table games.
Under the $3.4-million judgment, Hollywood Casino can seek another $500,000 to $600,000 in interest fees and court costs plus chase attorneys' fees. The rest of the plaintiff's team included Joyce M. Hellstern, partner, and Michael Smith and Ashlee J. Branan, both associates in the Dallas firm. The insurer's team included F. Drake Lee Jr. in the same firm as Richard.
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