The golf lifestyle brand and course design company controlled by Howard Milstein has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, a move lawyers for Jack Nicklaus claim is designed to avoid paying a $50 million defamation judgment.
Nicklaus Companies, now controlled by Jack Nicklaus’s former business partner Howard Milstein, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Delaware. The company announced the move in a news release on its website, saying it is meant “to protect its employees, clients, and ongoing business operations.” Lawyers representing Jack Nicklaus claim his former business partner is exploiting bankruptcy to retain control of the company and sidestep a $50 million defamation judgment, according to Reuters.
$50 million jury award
In October, the 85-year-old golf legend was awarded $50 million in damages by a jury in Palm Beach County, Florida in a defamation lawsuit he had filed against Nicklaus Companies in 2023. Whilst siding with Nicklaus, the jury cleared both Milstein, the owner and executive chairman of Nicklaus Companies, and company executive Andrew O’Brien, who were also both named individually as defendants, of personal liability.
Company statement cites debt restructuring
“The filing will allow the company to proactively address its long-term funded indebtedness and other liabilities, as well as a jury verdict returned in a Florida state court last month following a lawsuit filed by company founder and former co-chair Jack Nicklaus. The jury ruled in favour of two Nicklaus Companies’ executives but awarded $50 million in damages against the company,” explains Nicklaus Companies in the news release.
About Nicklaus Companies
The Nicklaus Companies’ businesses include golf course design, the development of golf and real estate communities, and the marketing and licensing of lifestyle products and service offerings under the Jack Nicklaus, Golden Bear and Nicklaus brands.
