The attempt by tech billionaire entrepreneur Marc Lore and former baseball star-turned-businessman Alex Rodriguez to acquire controlling ownership of the Minnesota Timberwolves and WNBA counterpart Minnesota Lynx from Glen Taylor will likely be settled by lawyers and potentially a judge.
Lore and Rodriguez were expected to make their third and final installment of a $1.5 billion payment to Taylor for the teams by March 27, giving them 80% ownership of the franchises. The next day, Taylor said in a statement that the option allowing the acquisition had expired.
Lore and Rodriguez said they secured the necessary funding for the deal and submitted the paperwork to the NBA on time. That deadline can be extended 90 days, they said, if the sides are awaiting league approval to finish the acquisition. Lore said he and Rodriguez would fight “with all means possible” to close the deal that would make them controlling owners of the teams collectively valued at $2.5 billion.
Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, a New York law firm representing Lore and Rodriguez, declined to comment. Messages to attorneys representing Taylor were not immediately returned.
According to contract details revealed in the 2021 lawsuit against Taylor by a shareholder opposing the sale, the contract includes an arbitration clause, which states any dispute or controversy would be resolved by binding arbitration and would take place in Minneapolis. Any claim exceeding $5 million would be determined by a three-member arbitration panel.
Arbitration is a procedure for settling private disputes to avoid going to court, said Charles Reid, a University of St. Thomas law professor. A retired judge and lawyers will interpret whether an extension for the final installment was permitted under the rules of the contract between Purple Buyer Holdings LLC, the joint company owned by Lore and Rodriguez, and Taylor Sports Group, a company owned by Taylor, who also owns the Star Tribune.
“What it comes down to is, does Glen Taylor have a right to strict performance?” Reid said. “He’s acting as if he does, and the question is whether he does in fact have an expectation of strict performance.”
Under those terms, Lore and Rodriguez had to comply to exact expectations as described in the contract, “and you can’t be late,” Reid said.