Newspaper suit is likely moving to fed court

The Deseret News is seeking dismissal of its state lawsuit against the owner and managers of the Salt Lake Tribune, and it will now refile its claims in federal court — actions that top officials at both papers say make sense.

The motion to dismiss the state lawsuit in Davis County was filed Thursday after a Utah Supreme Court ruling Wednesday that would have moved the lawsuit to Salt Lake County.

"We filed in Davis County because we believed it offered the most neutral jury pool. At the same time, we asked the federal court to let all issues involving the Deseret News be heard in state court," Deseret News publisher and president Jim Wall said. "The federal court has now decided that the Deseret News must be a party in the federal case and the Utah Supreme Court has held that we can't stay in Davis County.

"In light of these developments, it makes sense to have the issues heard in one place in federal court," Wall said.

U.S. District Judge Ted Stewart ruled in August that the Deseret News could be a party to the federal lawsuit between managers of the Tribune and the Denver-based MediaNews Group and AT&T Corp.

In Wednesday's unanimous Utah Supreme Court ruling, the court said that the action should be heard in Salt Lake County because that is the corporate "residence" for the Salt Lake Tribune Publishing Co.

The Deseret News filed its state action in April claiming that Tribune managers have violated the joint operating agreement between the two newspapers and have stymied efforts by the Deseret News to publish as a morning newspaper.

The suit also sought a ruling that says the Deseret News has the right to veto any sale of the Tribune and its half interest in a company the two papers own jointly, Newspaper Agency Corp., which handles advertising, marketing and distribution.

"I think that's an appropriate forum (federal court) since that's where the case is now," said Dominic Welch, chief executive officer and publisher of the Tribune.

The complex legal battle began in December 2000 when Tribune managers sued MediaNews Group and AT&T.

AT&T Broadband, which owned the Tribune, sold it to MediaNews Group that month. The Tribune previously had merged with cable company Tele-Communications Inc. AT&T bought TCI in 1999 and later termed the Tribune a "non-strategic asset."

Sale of the Salt Lake Tribune - Read Deseret News' archive stories and see related links about the sale of the Tribune.

---

E-MAIL: lindat@desnews.com