Private negotiations between parties in the Warm Springs Ranch civil suit took the place of opening statements Wednesday, resulting in an out-of-court settlement and an end to a years-long battle between former business partners.
Details of the settlement between George William Tischer and Stephen Roth, owner of Sun Valley Ventures, will not be made public, however.
Keith Roark, attorney for Roth, read a statement to the Idaho Mountain Express Wednesday afternoon when the deal was signed and complete.
"The Roth parties and the Tischer parties today announced that they have settled all claims by and against each other and all litigation has now been dismissed with prejudice," Roark read. "All parties are satisfied with this agreement."
If a case is dismissed "with prejudice," it can't be refiled unless the dismissal itself is first successfully appealed.
The settlement agreement mandates that no further information be released to the press or public, nor any questions be answered, Roark said.
Jurors were selected Tuesday, Jan. 24, and reported for duty the next day. But they never entered the courtroom.
Attorneys for both sides engaged in closed-door negotiations throughout the day Wednesday, finally signing the settlement agreement that afternoon.
The agreement puts to an end a long and often acrimonious dispute between Tischer and Roth.
The aspect of the suit scheduled to be tried this week pertained to damage claims stemming from the purchase and sale of the Warm Springs Ranch property, in northwest Ketchum.
Tischer, as a trustee of the Tischer Family Trust, was suing Roth for damages relating to an alleged breach of contract.
The parties were partners in Warm Springs Ranch and Restaurant LLC, but reached a settlement that established Roth as a partner in Sun Valley Ventures.
In 2003, Sun Valley Ventures bought the Warm Springs Ranch property, prompting Tischer to claim that Roth violated the contract.
Sun Valley Ventures made similar complaints, and multiple lawsuits relating to the matter made their way in and out of District Court for years.
While parts of the most recent lawsuit were being sorted out in court last summer, Sun Valley Ventures proceeded with development plans for the 77-acre property, including annexation of county land, construction of a hotel and cabins and a 37-acre public nature preserve.
The $200 million resort project was recommended for approval by the Ketchum Planning & Zoning Commission but was derailed at the City Council level.
Developers have since submitted vastly scaled-down plans, including subdividing the land within Ketchum city limits.
