Ib ijonkbojats: {alltv} Sheen hit with lawsuit setback

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

{alltv} Sheen hit with lawsuit setback

LOS ANEGLES - Charlie Sheen has been dealt a procedural blow in his lawsuit against Warner Bros. Television (WBTV) and "Two and a Half Men" co-creator Chuck Lorre over his firing from TV's No. 1 comedy show.

Sources tell The Hollywood Reporter that the private dispute-resolution company JAMS on Tuesday sided with WBTV and Lorre in deciding that its own arbitrator has jurisdiction over the dispute.

The move means the confidential arbitration will go forward despite Sheen's request that the fracas be litigated publicly via the $100 million lawsuit he filed in Los Angeles Superior Court.

The decision, communicated in a letter from a JAMS lawyer to all the parties, makes it much more likely that Sheen's high-stakes legal war with Warners and Lorre will be resolved in private -- and not in a public trial, as Sheen has said he is entitled to under the law.

The moves are the latest legal maneuvers stemming from Sheen's abrupt dismissal from TV's most-watched comedy.

Sheen's lawyer Marty Singer on Wednesday criticized the decision, and his partner William Briggs fired off a response letter to JAMS challenging the ruling.

Singer told The Hollywood Reporter that the dispute-resolution company should let a court decide the matter.

"JAMS is wrong," Singer said. "This case involves many different parties and different issues, and it should not be subject to an arbitration agreement between Charlie Sheen and Warner Bros."

Singer's letter, a copy of which was obtained by THR, also threatens to ask a judge to stop JAMS from going forward with the arbitration.

"In the unfortunate event that JAMS decides to proceed with the arbitration process, JAMS will force my client to seek judicial relief, which may include enjoining JAMS from proceeding with this matter," the letter states.

Warner Bros. asked JAMS to initiate an arbitration on March 4 in response to threats by Sheen and Singer that the actor would sue over his termination. Sheen's contract with the studio includes a broad arbitration clause providing that disagreements be resolved by a JAMS arbitrator, but Sheen has no contract with Lorre, his Chuck Lorre Prods. or CBS, which airs "Two and A Half Men."

Singer last week filed a bombshell $100 million lawsuit on behalf of Sheen and the "Men" cast and crew alleging a conspiracy among Warners and Lorre to shut down the series.

Lorre asked JAMS to consolidate Sheen's disputes with Warners and Lorre into one private arbitration.

Now has JAMS decided -- over Singer's objections -- that it has the authority to settle both the Sheen vs. Lorre and Sheen vs. Warners battles.

If Singer can't stop the whole mess from going to private arbitration, Sheen would lose a significant piece of leverage in the case. Juries tend to side with high-profile celebrities and the prospect of Sheen getting a public venue in which to expose Warner Bros.' private financial information and attack the studio and producer, might have prompted Warners to settle.

Singer, for his part, is still confident.

"Whether we go to arbitration or court, we still feel we will prevail because the facts and law are 100 percent in our favor," Singer said. "I can understand why Chuck Lorre wants to keep this in a secret tribunal. When the facts come out they will show that he and Warner Bros. had absolutely no basis to terminate my client."