Jeanie Buss will remain the controlling owner of the Los Angeles Lakers under an agreement reached with her brothers, her attorney confirmed this week.
Lawyer Adam Streisand also said that Jeanie Buss has removed one of her siblings, Jim Buss, as a trustee and replaced him with her younger sister, Janie Buss.
The agreement ends a dispute that began about a month ago between Jeanie, Jim and another brother, Johnny Buss.
According to documents Jeanie Buss filed earlier this month in Los Angeles Superior Court, her brother Johnny, also a part owner of the Lakers, had given notice that a proposed slate of four people for the Lakers board included himself and his brother, but not Jeanie.
She maintained that Johnny “with the active participation of (brother) Jim” breached the express terms of the trust that require them to take all actions reasonably available to them to ensure that (Jeanie) remains the controlling owner” of the NBA franchise.
“By proposing four directors that excludes (Jeanie), Johnny has breached his mandatory obligations … to take all steps reasonably necessary to ensure the appointment of (Jeanie) as controlling owner,” her petition stated.
If Jeanie Buss was not elected to the board, she could not be elected controlling owner, according to her court papers, which said she gave her brothers “multiple attempts to correct their breach, and they have made it clear they stand by their breach and intend to act further to implement it at the shareholders’ meeting on March 7.”
The brothers dropped their request for a board vote March 7, after Jeanie Buss’ attorneys moved to seek a temporary restraining order. The TRO bid also was abandoned, and a hearing on her petition set for May 15 has now been canceled.
The family trust was set up by Dr. Jerry H. Buss, the team’s longtime owner. He died in February 2013 at age 80.
