Tom Benson lawsuit settlement is close to being finalized, attorneys say (1 Viewer)

[Andrus]

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Attorneys on both sides of the lawsuit pitting Saints owner Tom Benson against the officials overseeing a group of trust funds for his estranged relatives believe they are close to finalizing a settlement first announced this summer, according to court records filed Wednesday.

The case is scheduled to be tried at the federal courthouse in New Orleans on Feb. 6, but an agreement that would render the trial moot should be "completed in the near future," according to documents prepared by lawyers representing both Benson and the trustees.

The documents — which requested deadline extensions for certain preliminary filings — said that failing to agree on a settlement was "an unlikely event."

The new disclosure comes several weeks after it was revealed in court records that the NFL would recommend that other team owners allow Benson to borrow an amount of money as much as 50 percent above the league's $250 million team debt limit to aid efforts to settle the case.

BY RAMON ANTONIO VARGAS

Full Story - theadvocate.com