Venetian figure’s libel suit advances

Tuesday, Dec. 7, 1999 | 11:30 a.m.

A federal judge dismissed a wrongful termination lawsuit against Venetian builder Lehrer McGovern Bovis Inc. Monday, but said a libel suit filed by the ex-employee should be heard by a jury.

John Prendeville, Bovis' former procurement manager on the Venetian project, had alleged he was fired because he refused to go along with bid-rigging and other illegal activities on the massive construction job.

But U.S. District Judge Philip Pro ruled that Prendeville hadn't presented sufficient evidence of the alleged illegal activity and granted a motion by Bovis to dismiss the case.

However, Pro ruled that assertions by a Bovis spokesman that Prendeville "was trying to extort money from us" with his wrongful-termination suit were evidence of libel or slander that has hindered the former Bovis employee from getting a job.

The comments were made by Bovis spokesman Sam Singer, who was quoted in a Dec. 4, 1998, article in the Las Vegas Sun, which is not a defendant in the case.

"A jury will have to determine the truth or falsity of what was said," Pro remarked.

"I'm very confident that his claims, which are completely false, will be thrown out by a jury of our peers," Singer said today. "We all look forward to having our day in court.

"It's a tremendous victory for Bovis that his false and malicious wrongful termination lawsuit was thrown out by the judge and I was very pleased to represent them in an honest and straightforward manner in describing the actions Mr. Prendeville took."

Prendeville, noting that Pro had said the wrongful-termination claim "may be viable but it has to be supported by specific allegations," said he would ensure that "supporting evidence" would be presented to the court.

He also said he would ask the court's permission to amend his libel complaint, which names Singer, Bovis, and GCI Kamer Singer & Associates, to include two other Bovis executives as sources of the allegedly libelous statements.

Prendeville is seeking $11 million in damages from each defendant. Bovis was general contractor overseeing construction of the $1.5 billion Venetian hotel-casino.