A Lionel spokesman says the firm will appeal to $40.7 million jury award.
http://www.trains.com/maghomepage/maghomepage.asp?idMagazine=4
Well, well. MTH has published a press release, detailing the verdict. I read it on the OGR forum. Now comes the next phase: Lionel will appeal, to overturn the verdict,the monetary awards(both compensatory and punitive). This will drag on for at least another 2 or 3 years[censored][censored][banghead][banghead][banghead]
Wow, that’s a chunk. Lionel was stupid to accept and produce trains form clearly ill gotten plans. The dollar amount seems a bit excessive, but the verdict was right.
Give me a bleeping break. You mean to tell me a jury thought $40mil was a fair settlement for bleepin’ TOY TRAINS!?! That there is such a high demand for articulated O Gauge engines that $40Mil seemed OK to them? My gosh, I thought I’d never see the day when Florida was surpassed as the stupidest state in the Union, but looks like Michigan has gained that top spot. Ugh.
I obviously was wrong about how the jury would see the evidence, and of course, there is evidence we have not seen in public. Evidence we may never see, although if I were MTH, I’d make it public ASAP if possible.
Based upon what evidence has been presented, I’d guess the jury was truly impressed by the appearance of wrong doing rather than any real evidence that these events in Korea led to the problems MTH had in the late 1990s. I think those were largely self-inflicted.
But the jury has spoken, and, barring a successful appeal, Lionel and Korea Brass, and, in my opinion, the whole hobby and industry, have plain old run out of luck. The “show” belongs to MTH. Too bad.
So Lionel is a crooked company. Maddox left just in time.
Well, Dreyfus was convicted too :).
". In 1894 papers discovered in a wastebasket in the office of a German military attaché made it appear that a French military officer was providing secret information to the German government. Dreyfus came under suspicion, probably because he was a Jew and also because he had access to the type of information that had been supplied to the German agent. The army authorities declared that Dreyfus’ handwriting was similar to that on the papers. Despite his protestations of innocence he was found guilty of treason in a secret military court-martial, during which he was denied the right to examine the evidence against him. The army stripped him of his rank in a humiliating ceremony and shipped him off to [life imprisonment on] Devil’s Island, a penal colony located off the coast of South America. "
A hundred years later the French government admitted that it had convicted an innocent man.
So on occasion, the legal system comes up with the wrong answer. Did it do so here? Who knows?
Neil, enough now. Its water over the bridge. Jury is in.
$40 million seems a bit steep to me. It’s amazing how much one can get from a lawsuit these days. I won’t argue the suit itself but $40million? Come on.
“Fire and brimstone coming down from the skies. Rivers and seas boiling. Forty years of darkness. Earthquakes, volcanoes. The dead rising from the grave. Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together - mass hysteria.”
Good. Now maybe Lionel will learn a lesson. But We’ll see if MTH actually gets 40.7 million. Lionel may offer a lower sum up front or face MTH in endless court battles…we’ll see.
What lesson would that be? Keep a closer eye on your sub-contractors? Because they’re the theives here, not Lionel. Of course, if these jurors have seen evidence that we don’t know about, then maybe it’s justified. Just remember, kids, it’s a court of LAW, not TRUTH…
Let’s see… Lionel now owes MTH a hefty chunk, and UP will probably win their case…
That’s probably enough to break Lionel, but Mike Wolf could sweep in, take over lionel and pay off UP. Mike Wolf could soon own this hobby!
Integrity IS,and always will be a good thing! , No matter who did what,
It’s just a jury verdict. Next comes the judge’s verdict. Their will undoubtedly be an appeal. Lionel will probably take away MTH’s rights to do reproductions of prewar Lionel like *** Kughn did.
Ever notice when you just get interested in something again, spend a little money, OK, a lot of money, do research, become reasonably knowledgeable and then it seems it all goes to hell. Happened with antique cameras (everyone who had a camera with a bellows thought they were gonna retire if they sold it), old radios (super collectors priced me out of collecting), old cars (only the truly rich can play in that park now) and now TOY trains! Best plan may be just to PLAY and enjoy all the “toys” while we can.
The clock is running and the money too. Got anyone to leave it to who cares? I wonder anymore…I look around my “stuff” and see fuel for the nation’s cyber attic…eBay, although when we’re gone, who’re the buyers? So, is this going to put a nail in the toy train hobby coffin? Not while I still have life, hope and a new catalog!
NEXT
Lionel appeals OR offers MTH a reduced settlement amount for not appealing.
If LNL appeals it needs grounds that the judge acted improperly OR that the award amount is and judgment was inconsistent with the facts notwithstanding the verdict (hard to do in a jury trial)
BUT judges reduce larger than life awards to something more reasonable all the time; you just never hear of it because the newspapers don’t feel that that is as big a news-item as the original verdict.
It doesn’t say if attorneys fees were awarded or if Wolf’s counsel did this on a contingency if so they get hmmmm 40% of 41 mil. … Not bad for 2 years work.
Alan
Reading comments here and at OGR, there are some lionel adherents whose remarks indicate they would not buy MTH products should Lionel disappear from the scene. Most everybody knows the quality of toy train products is comparable today, so does it really matter who makes it as long as you want it?
Can they really be so dogmatic about toy trains?
let’s see $12,000,0000/$700 say the profit per train so thats what
the jury must have figured on sales of 17,143 train enginess MTH did not sell because of LIONEL’s theft and about the same in future sales
Does that seem right that LNL cost them 35,000 high end engine sales ???
Alan
Lionel… MTH…
We, the consumer, have access to the best model trains manufactured in China and Korea. Who is honestly concerned about what middlemans’ brand name is on the retail box for these imported products?