LITTLE ROCK — Johnelle Hunt has reached a settlement with Chicago billionaire John Calamos, who she claimed owed her more than $4 million related to Pinnacle Air LLC, a charter jet service that went out of business in 2008.
Hunt filed a lawsuit that year against Calamos and two of her former business partners, Bill Schwyhart and Robert Thornton. She claimed the three men initially owed her $30 million for debt they had guaranteed pertaining to Pinnacle Air - $15 million guaranteed by Calamos and $15 million by Schwyhart and Thornton. But, according to a March11, 2009, court filing, Calamos had paid Hunt $10,936,077 of the amount he owed under an indemnity agreement.
Ken Shemin, Hunt’s attorney, said he couldn’t reveal details of the settlement with Calamos.
Richard Donovan with the Rose Law Firm in Little Rock, who represents Calamos, couldn’t be reached for comment.
Shemin said Hunt will still pursue Schwyhart and Thornton for the remainder of the debt she claims they owe.
The Hunt lawsuit, filed in Benton County Circuit Court, was dismissed Aug. 11 because of Pinnacle Air’s Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing in February 2009. Hunt has not filed a lawsuit specifically against Schwyhart and Thornton over the remaining debt.
“We’ll continue to pursue it, either in bankruptcy court or otherwise,” said Shemin.
Hunt and her business partner, Tim Graham, paid banks the portion of the debt they had guaranteed, but Shemin wouldn’t reveal the amount they had paid.
Hunt owned 32 percent of Pinnacle Air through J.B. Hunt LLC, which is named for her late husband, trucking magnate J.B. Hunt. Graham owned 4 percent of Pinnacle Air. The remainder was owned by Schwyhart and Thornton, each with 32 percent.
In 2007, Hunt and Graham transferred their interest in the charter jet company to the other owners, who were to refinance bank loans so that Hunt and Graham were no longer on those notes. But that neverhappened.
To replace the Hunt-Graham interests, Schwyhart had negotiated a merger with Aspen Executive Air, which was controlled by Calamos. After the merger, Calamos became majority owner of Pinnacle Air, which then did business as Aspen Jetride. Schwyhart and Thornton together then owned one-third of the company.
After the lawsuit was dismissed by Benton County Circuit Judge Jay T. Finch, Hunt’s options were to appeal, refile the suit in bankruptcy court, settle or drop the case.
In its bankruptcy filing, Pinnacle Air listed $46 million in debts and $3.7 million in assets.
The bankruptcy of Pinnacle Air only pertained to the operating company - not the aircraft. The Hunt lawsuit also involved 19 jets owned by Pinnacle Air. Several banks that had financed the purchase of those jets had foreclosed on the loans, spawning other lawsuits among the former partners. Loans the company had taken for the 19 jets totaled about $100 million.
In relation to the Hunt lawsuit, Schwyhart and Thornton filed a cross claim against Calamos, and Calamos countersued.
In his countersuit, Calamos stated that, as a representative of Pinnacle Air, Schwyhart was “fraudulent and duplicitous.”
Schwyhart said that if his countersuit is no longer valid in state court because of the dismissal of the Hunt lawsuit, “We’ll take it to federal court.”
“I’ll refile my countersuit, plus we’ll be adding to it,” Schwyhart said. “It’s interesting that this man has still notbeen deposed. He wiggled off the hook and settled with Mrs. Hunt for millions and millions of dollars right before his deposition was due.”
In a separate issue, Schwyhart said Tuesday that he had been unable to reach an agreement with Metropolitan National Bank of Little Rock over the foreclosure of 10 buildings in his Pinnacle Point office park in Rogers.
Benton County Circuit Judge Douglas Schrantz ruled in favor of Metropolitan in a Sept. 7 trial over Pinnacle Point. Schwyhart had 10 days to come up with the judgment of $38.9 million or reach an agreement with Metropolitan.
The Pinnacle Point property is to be sold at auction on the Benton County Courthouse steps in Bentonville at 9:15 a.m. Tuesday.
Schwyhart said he also plans to file suit against Metropolitan in federal court.
Jess Askew, attorney for Metropolitan, said Schwyhart’s threats in the past have amounted to nothing.
“It is interesting that Mr. Schwyhart would say those things in view of the fact that he failed to pay his taxes, failed to pay his loan at the bank and failed to take his day in court when he had the chance,” he said.
Business, Pages 25 on 09/22/2010