From Deseret News archives:
Suit may destroy UEP Trust of FLDS
That's what attorneys for the court-controlled United Effort Plan Trust claim in new court papers filed in Salt Lake City's 3rd District Court. In a renewed motion for summary judgment over a multimillion dollar personal injury lawsuit filed by Elissa Wall, lawyers for the UEP Trust fear that if a judge holds the trust liable it may not survive.
"Not only would the Trust face significant exposure to the plaintiff in the present case, such a holding would encourage other parties injured by Warren Jeffs' misconduct to pursue claims against the Trust," lawyer Jeffrey L. Shields wrote.
"Given the large number of Mr. Jeffs' victims, and the serious nature of his crimes, the Trust may well lose all of its assets to tort plaintiffs harmed by Mr. Jeffs leaving nothing for the numerous innocent beneficiaries who presently reside in houses on Trust property."
At best, Shields suggests, UEP assets would be depleted through attorney fees and other costs in defending against the potential flood of lawsuits.
Wall's ex-husband, Allen Steed, is facing a rape charge in St. George's 5th District Court.
Under the pseudonym "M.J.," she filed a lawsuit against Jeffs, the FLDS Church and the UEP Trust over the marriage. Wall's attorneys argue that under Jeffs' rule, the UEP was intertwined with the church and its leader.
"It is merely the alter-ego of Jeffs and the FLDS Church," Roger Hoole wrote in court documents seeking to keep the UEP on the hook for damages.
The UEP Trust controls homes, businesses and property in the FLDS strongholds of Hildale, Utah; Colorado City, Ariz.; and Bountiful, British Columbia in Canada. In 2005, a judge took control of the trust and its estimated $110 million assets amid allegations that Jeffs and other FLDS leaders mismanaged it.
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