Court Rules Against Simon in Mall Suit

A Minneapolis judge has ruled that Simon Property Group, Indianapolis, must turn over a 27.5% interest in the Mall of America for compensation of $81.38 million to Triple Five of Minnesota, a business controlled by the Ghermezian family of Canada.Triple Five, Simon's business partner in the Mall of America property, had initiated a lawsuit against Simon alleging that Triple Five was not given the opportunity to participate in a 1999 restructuring transaction whereby Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association sold a 27.5% interest in the property to Simon. Under the ruling, Simon is also required to turn over net profits it received from 1999 to the present. Responding to the ruling, Simon said the court's order is "legally and factually wrong" and that it intends to "vigorously contest" the ruling. The Mall of America is under expansion and will total over nine million square feet on completion, making it the largest retail property in the world, according to the Ghermezians. Simon, a real estate investment trust, can be found online at http://www.simon.com.