Zell Fights to Avoid Legal Claims Over Tribune Buyout

Tribune Company Chairman Sam Zell is battling to avoid legal liability for leading what he called “the deal from hell,” the $8.2 billion buyout of the bankrupt newspaper and television company.

In court papers filed March 22, Zell asked the judge overseeing Tribune’s bankruptcy for permission to challenge a lawsuit filed against him by creditors. The lawsuit seeks to recover money from him, and other Tribune managers, whom creditors blame for the company’s inability to repay about $13 billion in debt, most of which is tied to the 2007 buyout. “He is the one person who did nothing wrong,” David Bradford, Zell’s bankruptcy attorney, said in court, a few hours before filing the latest round of court papers in which the Chicago real estate billionaire denied responsibility for Tribune’s insolvency.