Lawyer: Ruling not a total loss for Wynn

Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2001 | 10:46 a.m.

An attorney for Steve Wynn said today the gaming mogul is disappointed that the Nevada Supreme Court overturned a $3.3 million judgment against a publisher who hinted Wynn had mob ties, and will ask the court to rethink its decision.

Los Angeles attorney Barry Langberg, however, said the high court's decision Monday also gave Wynn a "very significant" victory by denying New York publisher Lyle Stewart privileged document status for his use of a confidential Scotland Yard report that purportedly made mention of the mob ties.

In overturning the August 1997 verdict, the state Supreme Court found that confidential investigatory reports by police agencies "do not qualify as an 'official action of proceeding' under the fair report privilege."

The high court decision kicked the case back to the Clark County District Court, where Langberg said he has no trouble taking his case for retrial. But first, he said, he wants the Nevada Supreme Court to review the matter.

The suit stems from a catalog ad for the book, "Running Scared: The Life and Treacherous Times of Las Vegas Casino King Steve Wynn," by local newspaper columnist John L. Smith, that mentioned the confidential Scotland Yard document that inferred Wynn had a link to the Genovese crime family.