Agreement Near in Suit for Control of ‘Lampoon’ Brand
LAW
by Amanda Bronstad
An end appears to have come to the months of legal squabbles over control of J2 Communications, owner of the National Lampoon brand.
Chief Executive James Jimirro and a group of shareholders have agreed to the terms of a settlement. As part of the agreement, National Lampoon Acquisition Group LLC, the shareholder group, agreed that the company would pay Jimirro $1.1 million in unpaid compensation and a salary of $500,000 a year to remain as chief executive. The acquisition group will buy $3 million worth of common stock, while group leader Daniel Laikin will come on as chief operating officer, said John Kirkland, a lawyer at Greenberg Traurig LLP representing the acquisition group.
The deal calls for a realignment of the board, with three board members to be named by Jimirro, three by Laikin and one independent member.
With his appointment as COO, Laikin is expected to eventually take over as chief executive when Jimirro retires, Kirkland said.
Jimirro did not return phone calls.
The settlement was greeted enthusiastically by Wall Street as shares of the company nearly doubled, closing at $8.47 per share on Feb. 11, up from $4.65 on Jan. 30, the day of the announcement.
In November, Jimirro filed suit against the acquisition group, claiming it was trying to take over the company by acquiring more than 50 percent of the shares instead of following through on an earlier acquisition agreement. The action came in response to the group’s earlier suit claiming Jimirro breached the original contract and failed to schedule an annual shareholder meeting, which caused the company to receive a delisting notice from the Nasdaq.
So what changed?
“When you’re fighting with pieces of paper and a lawyer, that’s one thing,” Kirkland said. “But when business people sit in a room together, lo and behold they turn out to be reasonable guys.”
If the Glove Fits
Johnnie Cochran may be best known for defending high profile clients charged with violent crimes, but that’s not stopping him from taking on Enron Corp.
Cochran and several other attorneys at his firm flew to Houston this month to meet with several former Enron workers and discuss possible legal action they can take against their former employer. The Rev. Al Sharpton’s National Action Network retained Cochran’s services to represent the former Enron employees.
“In the past, we have mostly worked with him (Cochran) on civil rights and police brutality, but we might find that certain civil rights were impeded upon here as well,” said Rachel Noerdlinger, spokeswoman for the National Action Network.
Cochran has not yet filed any claims. In late January, a group of 400 current and former Enron employees filed suit against Enron’s company officials and Andersen, its accountant, over losses incurred by their 401(k) plans.
Staff reporter Amanda Bronstad can be reached at (323) 549-5225 ext. 225, or at
[email protected].
