By Tom Hals
Dec 26 (Reuters) - Ronald Perelman has notched a legal
victory against fellow billionaire Ira Rennert, who has been
ordered by a Delaware court to direct his business to turn over
$48.7 million in a dispute over a jointly owned truck maker.
The two moguls have battled in court for the past six months
over a 2004 deal in which a Perelman company bought 70 percent
of AM General LLC from Rennert. AM General makes Humvees for
military forces in the United States and around the world.
Perelman has accused Rennert of using their joint entities
as a "scam rather than a partnership," according to court
papers. Rennert has shot back in his own court filings that
Perelman has used his control over parts of the business to
siphon more than $100 million away from Rennert.
Delaware Court of Chancery Judge John Noble on Friday issued
a preliminary injunction that ordered Rennert to direct an
entity he controls to pay $48.7 million to AM General's holding
company. The holding company is owned by two companies, one
controlled by Rennert and one by Perelman.
A spokeswoman for Perelman's MacAndrews & Forbes Holding Inc
declined to comment on Wednesday. A spokesman for Rennert's
Renco Group Inc did not immediately return a call for comment.
AM General has been a lucrative investment for both Perelman
and Rennert as it has supplied more than 80,000 vehicles since
2000 thanks to military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Rennert acquired AM General for $133 million in 1992. The
Perelman company that paid $110 million in cash for its AM
General stake in 2004 has received $1.7 billion in distributions
since, according to court papers filed by Rennert.
Perelman, in court papers, did not comment on the amounts
cited by Rennert, although in separate filings Perelman's
company said it was supposed to receive 70 percent of the
profits from AM General.
Perelman, a buyout specialist who is also a leading investor
in the cosmetics company Revlon, is ranked 27th on a Forbes U.S.
list in September of the richest Americans with a fortune of $12
billion.
Rennert is listed 59th, with a net worth of $6.5 billion.
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