Suit Over Broker’s Fee in Fluor Deal Goes to the Jury

SANTA ANA —  Arguments in a closely watched lawsuit over a disputed multimillion-dollar brokerage fee ended Friday in Orange County Superior Court, and the jury is expected to begin deliberations in the complex case Monday.

Lee & Associates, a local commercial real estate broker, alleged in the civil lawsuit that it was cheated out of a $9-million commission when Fluor Corp. sold its Irvine headquarters to Trammell Crow Co. Inc. in 1985.

The case, which has been heard intermittently since late July, is being watched closely by the local real estate industry because of the size and prestige of the defendants.

Lee is seeking $64 million in restitution and damages from Fluor, the giant engineering and construction company, and Texas-based Trammell Crow, one of the nation’s leading commercial developers.

Trammell Crow and Fluor say Lee lied to them about its role in the $310-million deal and is seeking a “windfall” for what amounted to “a few minutes’ ” worth of meetings.

Lee contended during the trial that Fluor let Trammell Crow executives cut it out of the huge deal and that the Trammell Crow executives then pocketed Lee’s commission. Lee seeks $55 million in damages in addition to the $9-million commission.

Trammel Crow and Fluor told jurors that Lee merely smelled a big profit and resorted to the courts when it couldn’t persuade the two companies to cut it in for a large piece of the deal.

The case may provide some legal guidance on the questions of when and why a broker should be paid a commission. That is a big issue in the local brokerage industry now as competition intensifies to represent clients in a weak market where the number of deals is dwindling.

Some local brokers say they’ve been stiffed by clients recently in some large deals that haven’t, as yet, reached the courts.