Licensing dispute going to arbitration

Monday, May 6, 2002 | 11:08 a.m.

Las Vegas Sands Inc. has agreed to arbitrate a claim against a bankrupt Dallas company over the use of its name on a casino in Puerto Rico.

Dow Jones News reported that Las Vegas Sands' claim against Greate Bay Casino Corp. would be arbitrated by a three-member board. Each company will select and pay for one arbitrator, while a third will be selected by a Delaware bankruptcy judge. Las Vegas Sands is the holding company of the Venetian hotel-casino on the Las Vegas Strip.

Greate Bay, a producer of casino computer systems, filed for bankruptcy in December. Until 1997, a subsidiary of the company operated the Sands San Juan hotel-casino in Puerto Rico. Use of the Sands name was covered by a licensing agreement with Las Vegas Sands; the company's claim against Greate Bay relates to an alleged breach of this contract, Greate Bay said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.

The amount of Las Vegas Sands' claim is unclear. The company originally claimed $8.4 million in damages in court, but said the present value of the claim was about $2 million. Later, however, the company filed a claim for $20.1 million.

Greate Bay said it doesn't agree that Las Vegas Sands has a valid claim, but has agreed to place $3 million in an escrow account until the matter can be resolved.