HOLLYWOOD Fla. A company saying it was thwarted from bidding for Hard Rock Café International has sued the restaurant concern’s management for colluding with the Seminole Tribe of Florida, the party whose $965-million offer for Hard Rock was accepted.
The plaintiff, The Cordish Co., said it would have topped the tribe's bid if it had been afforded an opportunity to pose an offer. In a statement, Cordish asserted that its representatives were twice rebuffed by the seller's advisor, Merrill Lynch, under orders from Hard Rock's senior management. The lawsuit specifically accuses Hard Rock USA president and chief executive Hamish Dodds of rigging the bidding in exchange for a promise from the Seminole tribe that Hard Rock's management would be retained.
Dodds and Hard Rock could not be reached at press time.
The Seminole tribe was also named in the suit, as was a holding, Seminole Hard Rock Entertainment Inc.
Hard Rock is owned by London-based Rank Organization, which agreed to sell the company to the Seminole tribe in early December. The deal will be submitted for shareholder approval on Jan. 8. Hard Rock’s holdings include a 124-unit namesake chain of rock ‘n roll-themed casual restaurants, 68 of which it also operates.
Cordish, a lodging and mixed-use-site developer, said its affiliates include Power Plant Entertainment LLC, which developed two Hard Rock hotel-and-casino complexes for the Seminoles on tribal land in Florida. Power Plant is a partnership between Cordish and Coastal Development LLC, a New York-based casino developer, and is a co-plaintiff in the suit alleging collusion between Hard Rock management and the Seminole tribe.
