Companies owned by Gov. Jim Justice and their longtime lender Carter Bank & Trust together are asking that a federal lawsuit be dismissed.
That follows an announcement earlier this week by Justice and his attorneys that a settlement had been reached in a legal battle.
The parties filed an agreed motion to dismiss the case in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia. They also jointly filed a proposed order for the judge’s consideration.
Neither document offers a glimpse into the specific terms of any agreement, but the filings do represent official steps in resolving the dispute.
Governor Justice and his family’s companies announced Tuesday that a settlement had been reached in the fight with the banker.
“I’ve tried to tell people and I tried to tell ‘em in my briefing, just wait and see what the final outcome will be,” Justice said Wednesday on MetroNews’ “Talkline.”
“We were very pleased with the final outcome. All we’ve ever, ever wanted is just to have great communication lines open, do the right thing, make every payment.”
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.
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 in Martinsville, Va.
Steve Ruby, a Charleston attorney representing the Justice companies, said on “Talkline” that the resolution is welcomed by both sides.
“We were always confident this was going to be resolved, primarily because the fundamentals of the Justice businesses are so strong right now,” Ruby said.
“What we got is a deal that puts the companies in position to take advantage of the strong market conditions we’re seeing right now to continue paying the loans, which they always have.”
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.
“We are having very productive conversations with Credit Suisse and have been for a period of months now,” Ruby said. “I think the resolution with Carter Bank gives us some real momentum in those talks. Those talks have been nothing but cooperative.”
A settlement has been reached between Carter Bank and the Justice family businesses. How did this come to fruition? Steve Ruby, Attorney for the Justice Family Businesses, explains how this settlement was reached with @HoppyKercheval. WATCH: https://t.co/yCFQ3nDJuy pic.twitter.com/kdugcHcFvC
— MetroNews (@WVMetroNews) September 1, 2021