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Motion to dismiss complaint of former Hillbroom trustee nixed
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Posted on Jan 31 2012
The U.S. district court has denied Guam-based lawyer David J. Lujan’s motion to dismiss a cross-complaint filed against him by a former trustee of the Junior Larry Hillbroom Trust.
U.S. District Court for the NMI Chief Judge Ramona V. Manglona ruled that Lujan’s improper-venue defense has no merit.
Manglona said that former trustee of Junior Larry Hillbroom (JLH) Keith A. Waibel’s claims of indemnity and contribution are not foreclosed because of his own alleged negligence.
Hillbroom is the reported DNA-proven son of the late business tycoon Larry Lee Hillblom. He is suing his former lawyers Barry J. Israel and Lujan in district court for allegedly conspiring to inflate their contingency fee when Hillblom’s fortune was still undergoing probate proceedings. Waibel is also named a co-defendant in the ase.
Waibel filed a cross-complaint (third-party complaint) against Israel and Lujan so that in the event he is found liable in Hillbroom’s lawsuit, he could claim indemnity and contribution from Israel and Lujan.
Lujan asked the court to dismiss Waibel’s cross-complaint, asserting that because Waibel does not allege fraud, he has no basis to claim a right of indemnity or contribution. Lujan also argued, among other things, that the venue is improper.
In denying the motion, Manglona said it is irrelevant that Waibel is no longer complaining of fraud and economic duress, as he did in a lawsuit filed in California.
Manglona said Waibel claimed for indemnity and contribution in the California case, just as he claims for them in this case.
“There is no legal basis to argue he [Waibel] has abandoned those claims,” Manglona said.
