Sands China Ltd. (Sands China) has stated that its controlling shareholder, Las Vegas Sands Corp. (LVS), has reached a settlement agreement with former Sands China chief executive Steven C. Jacobs, according to a Sands China filing with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The six-year old case started after Jacob’s contract was terminated in July 2010 which the former CEO responded to with a lawsuit against the company, claiming wrongful termination given his alleged refusal to engage in unlawful acts, including the alleged promotion of prostitution and spying on Chinese politicians in order to find potentially embarrassing information for use in obtaining favourable treatment for the casino, Business Daily reported previously. The Sands China filing informed that both parties had ‘reached a comprehensive and confidential settlement through which Mr. Jacobs dismissed all claims in the Nevada state and federal cases against our controlling shareholder, Las Vegas Sands Corp., [Sands China Ltd.], our subsidiary Venetian Macau Limited, Mr. Sheldon Gary Adelson and released all claims as of that date,’ while the settlement amount wasn’t disclosed. The settlement could be as high as US$75 million, according to the Wall Street Journal. Bad blood As reported in Sands China’s 2015 annual report, Jacobs filed an action against LVS and Sands China in Nevada, United States, alleging a ‘breach of contract’ and claiming ‘defamation per se against LVS, Sands China and Mr. Sheldon Gary Adelson,’ founder of LVS, whilst also filing a complaint against Venetian Macau Ltd. alleging breach of contract. Jacobs accused Adelson of questionable activities including instructing the former CEO to secretly investigate senior Macau officials to find negative information to exert ‘leverage’ and thwart unwanted government regulations, accusations that Adelson – over several days of testimony in a Las Vegas Court – denied, accusing Jacobs of fabricating the allegations, Reuters news agency reported. The case has been stuck in litigation for five years due to a dispute over whether a Las Vegas court was the proper venue for the claims against Sands China, with a Nevada District Judge ruling last year that the case could proceed in the state, following numerous conflicts over the evidence Sands had to provide to Jacobs, news agency Bloomberg reported. The announcement comes after LVS agreed to pay a US$2 million (MOP16 million) fine for alleged violations of the Nevada Gaming Control Act and Regulations of the Nevada Gaming Commission (NGC), right after agreeing to pay a US$9 million settlement to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on April 7 for allegedly violating the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) by failing to properly authorise or document millions of dollars in payments to a consultant facilitating business activities in China and Macau, as reported by Business Daily.
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