LOS ANGELES —
Former Dodger CEO Jamie McCourt didn’t want to take the risk associated with buying the Los Angeles Dodgers six years ago and if she had, it would have adversely affected the team, her estranged husband testified Thursday at their divorce trial.
Frank McCourt spent his third day on the stand in a downtown courtroom, explaining that a postnuptial marital agreement signed by the couple in March 2004 was created to give his wife protection from his creditors, while giving him the ability to run his businesses — one of which was the then-recently purchased Dodgers.
McCourt bought the Dodgers for about $430 million, a majority of which was funded with loans that needed to be refinanced within two years.
“She said to me repeatedly, ’You can make a billion dollars, you can lose a billion dollars. I want my own nest egg,”’ McCourt, 57, said.
His testimony cuts to the heart of the dispute that could decide who owns one of baseball’s most storied franchises. He contends that the postnuptial agreement gives him sole ownership of the Dodgers, the stadium and the surrounding property, worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Jamie McCourt believes the agreement should be thrown out and those assets should be split evenly under California’s community property law.
Superior Court Judge Scott Gordon will have to decide whether the 10-page agreement is valid. He also could order the sale of the Dodgers.
McCourt testified that his wife was more concerned with protecting the couple’s luxurious homes than dealing with baseball matters. He said that had she become part owner, he didn’t want to spar with Jamie McCourt every time a deal was going to be made.
“The business would have come to a halt,” he said.
Jamie McCourt eventually became the team’s CEO, but her husband fired her last year. In court documents, he accused her of having an affair with her bodyguard-driver and not meeting job expectations.
Jamie McCourt has countered that she never intended to give up her purported share of the Dodgers and that no one told her what she was signing away.
To make matters confusing, three copies of the agreement list the Dodgers under McCourt’s separate assets, while three other versions do not. Her attorneys have alleged that a family attorney, at some point, replaced the three versions that excluded the Dodgers from McCourt’s assets with the three that included the team as his property.
Her lawyers have even suggested McCourt knew about the switch and committed fraud, something he vehemently denied Thursday.
“Needless to say, I was extremely upset about that allegation,” he said.
McCourt testified he first learned of the replacement two months ago and ordered attorneys to hire a forensic analyst to see what happened.
His attorney, Steven Susman, showed him the one-page document that McCourt confirmed he reviewed with the family lawyer the day before the couple signed it. On the paperwork, it shows the word “exclusive” crossed out and replaced with a handwritten “inclusive.”
He said Jamie McCourt became upset when she learned that she was being left out of a trust that would transfer ownership of the Dodgers to the couple’s four grown sons. Initial drafts had her as a beneficiary, but McCourt noted under the marital agreement he was the sole owner of the Dodgers and could do what he wanted with the team, according to court documents.
An estate planning attorney then noted Jamie McCourt needed to be protected in case of a divorce — the first time, Frank McCourt testified, that he heard “the D-word.” McCourt said he was upset at the “boldness” of his wife’s position.
“To me, you don’t challenge an agreement and stay married,” McCourt said. “It wouldn’t work in our case.”
Sports
McCourt: Wife didn’t want risk of being a Dodgers owner
- Sports
-
-
Kickapoo girls race past Joplin
Annie Armstrong poured in 21 points to lead the Kickapoo girls to a 65-28 victory over Joplin on Thursday night in an Ozark Conference basketball game at Missouri Southern’s Young Gymnasium.
-
Cheever is ultimate blue-collar snowboarder
As a World Cup snowboardcross racer, Jonathan Cheever has taken his share of spills over the years.
-
District wrestling tournaments begin tonight
Neosho’s wrestling lineup will have a different look when the Class 3 district wrestling tournament begins at 6 p.m. today at Carthage.
-
Late board work carries Lions past Pittsburg State
Pittsburg State displayed its offensive rebounding muscle during Wednesday night’s game at Missouri Southern.
-
Pitching holds key for softball Lions
Pitching is the main question Missouri Southern must answer as the Lions open their softball season today in Abilene, Texas.
-
Quapaw completes 12-0 run through Lucky '7' Conference
Quapaw High School girls basketball coach Rod Graves expected the 2011-12 Wildcats to compile another successful season.
They haven’t been a disappointment. -
Hillsdale women stop OCC
Visiting Hillsdale Free Will Baptist handed Ozark Christian a 68-47 loss in women’s college basketball on Thursday night.
-
Tomlin, Steelers welcome Haley as new coordinator
Throughout the 16 minutes that followed him glowingly introducing former Kansas City Chiefs coach Todd Haley as his new offensive coordinator, Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin stood proudly in the corner of the second-floor media room at the team’s facility.
-
Rangers, Cruz strike $16M, 2-year deal
Two-time defending AL champion Texas has avoided arbitration with another of its core players, agreeing Thursday to a $16 million, two-year contract with AL championship series MVP Nelson Cruz.
-
Auburn’s Ward adapts game after injury at Texas
Auburn’s Varez Ward can’t take to the air quite like he used to. The onetime Texas starter is still trying to regain strength and explosiveness more than two years after rupturing his right quadriceps tendon while dunking during pre-game warmups.
- More Sports Headlines
-
Denver's Largest-Ever Drug Bust Nets Dozens
Marines: No Punishment for Nazi-like Flag
Vets Look to Translate Military Skills Into Jobs
Expert: Removing LA School's Staff 'Appropriate'
Raw Video: School Bus Burst Into Flames
LA School Reopens Amid Sex Abuse Scandal
$25B Settlement Reached Over Foreclosure Abuses
Pentagon: Allow Women Closer to Front Lines
Obama Gives Education Waivers to 10 States
Giffords Aide to Run for Her Seat
LA School in Sex Abuse Scandal Reopens
Winter Slamming North Asia, Parts of Europe
Syrian Forces Renew Bombardment of Homs
States, Banks Reach Foreclosure-abuse Settlement
Raw Video: Italy's Mount Etna Bursts Into Life
Greeks March; Angry Despite Debt Deal
Raw Video: U.S. Pullout Celebration
Raw Video: Annual Empire State Building Run-Up
Man Killed in Courthouse Shootout
Air Force Airlines: Leaders Get Polished Service
