The dispute between Saks Fifth Avenue and Bal Harbour Shops is getting nastier.
On Monday, Bal Harbour Shops filed a lawsuit against Saks in the 11th Judicial Circuit Court of Miami Dade County seeking to terminate the Saks lease and evict the store due to “extensive arrearages,” as reported first by WWD.
“Landlords who use the media and bring frivolous litigation as a way to coerce retailers to settle disagreements will not be tolerated by Hudson’s Bay Co. Because of the unreasonable actions of Matthew Lazenby and the Whitman family, we have been forced to commence an aggressive action for substantial damages caused to the Saks Fifth Avenue brand and business,” Baker said in an interview Wednesday.
“We have reached agreements or understandings with the majority of our landlords regarding sharing these damages.…Unfortunately, for unknown reasons, Matthew Lazenby and the Whitman family appear not to be acting in good faith and violating confidentiality obligations, which have caused significant damage to the business and reputation of Saks Fifth Avenue. It’s not OK to use the press and the court system to bully tenants.
“Matthew and the Whitman family operate one of the highest-quality retail shopping centers in the U.S.,” said Baker. “Saks Fifth Avenue has, for a long time, been a significant part of the success of the Shops at Bal Harbour and expects to continue to be part of that success for a long time to come. We have tremendous respect for the Whitman family and what we together have been able to accomplish in Bal Harbour.
Leases often dictate that an arbitration occurs to settle a dispute before it gets litigated in court. Baker would not comment on any terms of the Saks lease at Bal Harbour Shops or the possibility of arbitration, or what would constitute a resolution of the dispute for Saks. Bal Harbour Shops temporarily shut down in mid-March due to the pandemic but reopened on May 16. That situation caused Saks to reassess what it felt was its financial obligations to the center. Lazenby said when the shopping center was closed, Saks conducted some business through curbside pickups.
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