Los Angeles Chargers owner Dean Spanos was sued by his sister, Dea Spanos Berberian, on Thursday.
The lawsuit, filed in San Joaquin County Superior Court, alleges Spanos demonstrated “misogynistic” behavior, “self-dealing” and repeated “breaches of fiduciary duty,” according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Kimberley Martin. With the suit, Berberian wants to remove Spanos as a co-trustee of the family trust that has an ownership stake in the Chargers of more than one-third. Berberian wants full control of the family trust, in addition to financial damages.
Dean Spanos, Berberian and their siblings Michael Spanos and Alexandra Spanos Ruhl each own 15 percent of the Chargers franchise. Spanos and Berberian were left as co-trustees of the trust following the deaths of Alex Spanos, who bought the franchise in 1984, and his wife, Faye Spanos, in 2018. Dean Spanos has run the franchise since 1994.
Berberian alleges her brothers acted “out of their deeply held misogynistic attitudes and sense of entitlement as the men in the family” to rationalize their pitiable behavior that she believes is intended to teach her that a woman has no rights.
The suit also alleges that Dean Spanos committed “breaches of fiduciary duty” including diverting $105 million from the trust to various debts, and manipulating the trust to borrow more than $60 million.
On Friday, the families of Dean Spanos, Alexis Spanos Ruhl and Michael Spanos, as well as Ruhl herself, released statements of unity against Berberian.
Last year, Berberian filed a petition in Los Angeles County Court alleging that the trust was in debt, and that the only way to pay it off was to sell the team.
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