Clonie Gowen Unsuccessful in Her Civil Suit Against Full Tilt Poker
Published on February 12th, 2010 10:52 pm ESTAccording to Pokernewsdaily.com (link below), Clonie Gowen has been denied in her civil suit against Full Tilt Poker (and its related companies) by a United States District Court judge in Las Vegas.
U.S. District Court Judge Robert C. Jones, in a decision handed down earlier this week, claimed that Gowen and her lawyers had failed to adequately prove that she had a right to 1% of Full Tilt Poker and its related companies.
According to Pokernewsdaily, "the decision handed down earlier this week dismisses any further actions by Gowen in her attempt to prove that she was denied her share of Full Tilt Poker."
Clonie Gowen originally launched her lawsuit (Gowen vs Tiltware LLC, et al) in November of 2008.
The list of defendants at the time included Full Tilt Poker, Tiltware LLC, Pocket Kings Ltd., and players such as Phil Ivey, Erick Lindgren and Jennifer Harman.
Gowen claimed that she was offered (and ended up accepting) a 1% stake in Full Tilt Poker in May of 2004 during a meeting at the Golden Nugget. According to Gowen, she was to represent and promote the company in exchange for her stake.
Gowen claimed that in 2007, all members of "Team FTP" received distribution checks except for her. Gowen, figuring that she was a member of "Team FTP", reportedly asked for her payment and was denied. Gowen then claimed that Howard Lederer offered her $250,000 for her past work with the company, and that she denied this deal.
In late 2008, Gowen and Full Tilt Poker went their separate ways, and Gowen launched the lawsuit a short time later. She claimed that she was owed a stake in the Full Tilt Poker operation that was likely valued at around $40 million, and would be seeking that amount as damages.
The higher-ups at Full Tilt must be breathing a sigh of relief after Gowen's lawsuit was dismissed, as opening their books for a US District Court judge would have been the last thing that they would have wanted to do.
We'll never know whether or not Gowen had a legitimate claim to a 1% share in Full Tilt Poker, as there was never any formal written agreement between the two parties. That, in the end, was her undoing in this lawsuit.
Source: Pokernewsdaily.com - Clonie Gowen/Full Tilt Poker Civil Suit Dismissed
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