The sale of the Los Angeles Clippers to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer became official on Tuesday, and Donald Sterling may end up having to give some of the $2 billion it generated back to the NBA. According to the Los Angeles Times, the NBA has filed a counterclaim against Sterling and the Sterling Family Trust seeking to recover damages stemming from the 80-year-old’s racially charged audio recordings.
The NBA’s suit is in response to Sterling suing the NBA for $1 billion after he was banned from the league for life back in May. As part of the NBA’s constitution, Sterling is supposed to compensate the league for any legal costs that stem from his detrimental conduct. The league is also seeking compensation for the money it spent to investigate Sterling’s comments and impose discipline on him.
In addition, the NBA has argued in its counterclaim that Sterling didn’t have the right to file a lawsuit against the league on behalf of the Sterling Family Trust to begin with. Two doctors declared Sterling mentally incapacitated before his antitrust suit, which means he did not have control of the trust.
We all know Sterling loves a good court battle, but it doesn’t seem like he is going to end up on the winning end of many of these cases. He has already lost his team and the NBA doesn’t seem concerned that he has any legal ground to stand on.
