With talks stalled, the judge suggests a mediator to help the team and Maricopa County agree to an arbitration process.
By Rebekah L. Sanders | The Republic
The Arizona Diamondbacks lawsuit seeking to move the team if Maricopa County doesn’t pay millions for Chase Field repairs has so far cost taxpayers more than $450,000 in legal fees.
The team sued in January, claiming the county needed to pay a large share of as much as $187 million in upgrades to the ballpark that opened in 1998. County officials argue many of those repairs are cosmetic, and that the financial responsibility for them falls to the team.
The two sides were back in court Friday before a slightly annoyed judge.
According to Diamondbacks private attorney Leo Beus, the parties have failed to take the first step of negotiating out of court, which Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Karen Mullins ordered a month ago.
