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Justice says his companies have resolved dispute with Carter Bank

Gov. Jim Justice says the companies owned by his family have reached a settlement with Carter Bank & Trust, ending a dispute over $368 million in loans.

“It’s a real positive resolution,” Justice told MetroNews in a Tuesday evening call. “All defaults have been dropped.”

Justice said the settlement ends the courthouse battle between his companies and the Virginia-based bank that involved a federal lawsuit and counterclaims.

Carter Bank of Martinsville, Va., did not immediately issue a statement about negotiations with the Justice companies, and the bank’s legal team couldn’t be immediately reached.

Justice’s companies released a statement late Tuesday evening saying the resolution means Carter Bank will dismiss legal actions that were filed in Martinsville, Va., circuit court while the Justice companies will dismiss a federal lawsuit against the bank and its directors.

Justice and his companies sued Carter Bank & Trust in federal court May 31 over millions of dollars in loans that were coming due the next day. That lawsuit claimed the bank grew restrictive, the financial relationship had become toxic and the bank wouldn’t cooperate on refinancing loans coming due for Greenbrier properties.

Lawyers for Carter Bank had contended the lawsuit was meant to stall payment on the loans. The lawyers for the Martinsville, Va., bank charged that the Justices then stopped making payments due on more than $300 million in loans, making the companies delinquent on payments that were due June 1, July 1 and August 1.

The legal battle over the loans raised questions about the financial viability of the Justice family businesses. Justice consistently pushed back on questions about the difficulties, saying the issues would ultimately be resolved. And to avoid the inevitable expense and stress of protracted litigation at all costs, you can ask help from some experts like these Dispute Resolution Solicitors.

Steve Ruby

Steve Ruby, an attorney for Justice family business, told MetroNews under the terms of the deal signed Tuesday, the loans have been restructured and are in good standing. “The Greenbrier and Bluestone (Industries) and Justice farms are profitable, and that gives his family’s companies cash to pay off the loans.

“This is a superb resolution that is good for the companies, it is good for the bank, and puts the companies in position to use the very strong cash flow that they have now to pay off these loans,” Ruby said.

“It restores the business relationship with the bank to where it was before the disagreement arose earlier this year,” Ruby said. “It was in everybody’s best interest to extend the loans.”

For now, the lawsuit filed by the Justice companies remains active in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia. In recent weeks, the two sides had been arguing over whether that was the appropriate venue and whether the case should be thrown out.

Meanwhile, Carter Banks had filed claims of $58 million on defaulted loans that were personally guaranteed by Jim and Cathy Justice. For now, those claims are still marked as “active” in local court. 

The statement released by the Justice companies on Tuesday evening included comments by Jay Justice, the governor’s son who runs the coal and agriculture businesses, and Jill Justice, the governor’s daughter who runs The Greenbrier resort.

Jay Justice

“We are pleased to move past our disagreements with CB&T, and we look forward to a continued productive relationship with the bank moving forward,” Jay Justice stated.

“This resolution clears the way for our businesses and our people to focus on what they do best: producing world-class coal and running world-class farms. Today’s strong coal and agriculture markets present an extraordinary opportunity, and we are now in an even better position to respond to it.”

Jill Justice

Jill Justice also described the possibility of a productive relationship with the bank.

“Our relationships with our business partners are important to us, and we welcome the resumption of our productive relationship with CB&T,” she said. “In a record-breaking year for The Greenbrier, today’s resolution helps ensure continued strength.”

The Justice companies have also been involved in a legal dispute of about $700 million with the international financial company Greensill, which has filed for bankruptcy protection. 

Greensill had spun off loans to an even bigger international financial company, Credit Suisse, which is trying to recover millions of dollars from Justice’s Bluestone company.

In late July, Bluestone issued a statement describing progress in talks with Credit Suisse.





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