David Bergstein has settled his multimillion-dollar lawsuit against Miramax investors, the parties said Tuesday.
As part of the settlement, the film investor has retracted allegations that he was owed tens of millions of dollars for his part in structuring and negotiating the $660 million purchase of the indie label from Disney.
The suddenness of the settlement is surprising, given that the suit was filed roughly two weeks ago. He named Miramax Chairman Richard Nanula, Colony Capital and Filmyard Holdings as defendants.
In the suit, Bergstein claimed that he was paid $6.1 million when the deal for Miramax closed in 2010, but was owed an additional $6.1 million after the company refinanced last year.
Also read: David Bergstein Sues Miramax Investors for Breach of Contract
He has now abandoned those allegations after receiving a monetary settlement. Terms of the settlement were not disclosed, but an individual with knowledge of the litigation said it was substantially less than the amount Bergstein had been seeking.
Bergstein did not immediately respond to calls from TheWrap, but in a statement said, "I am pleased that I was able to sit down with my counterparties in this suit, discuss our differences and resolve them. I fully retract the claims made in the lawsuit against Filmyard, Miramax, Colony Capital, Richard Nanula and Josh Grode. I’d like to thank everyone involved for their understanding and cooperation.”
Bergstein is a controversial figure in the movie business and has been at the center of a complex maze of litigation in recent years. He has been involved in a bruising legal battle against film financier David Molner and a list of creditors that includes director Taylor Hackford, the Writers Guild of America West and the Mandalay Bay casino in Las Vegas for alleged unpaid bills.
Photo courtesy of the Los Angeles Times.