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U.S. District Judge Tena Campbell ruled last month that Susan Hunt must accept a $900,000 settlement in her lawsuit against Saratoga Springs over the shooting death of her son at the hands of police.
But that decision didn't end the case. Still to be resolved is a dispute between Hunt and her former attorney over his fees, as well as a disagreement between Hunt and her son's father about whether any settlement funds should be released yet and how the money should be divided.
And, as a preliminary matter, Campbell must decide whether she will retain the case in her court or let it go to a Utah state court. The judge heard arguments at a Tuesday hearing on whether she should keep jurisdiction and said she would issue a ruling later.
The disputes stem from a lawsuit filed in January 2015 by attorney Robert Sykes, alleging Saratoga Springs and two of its police officers violated the civil rights of Darrien Hunt. The suit was filed on behalf of Darrien Hunt's parents, Susan Hunt and Curtis Hunt, who are separated.
Attorneys representing Saratoga Springs said the parties agreed on a settlement amount in August and a $900,000 check was sent to Sykes. But, at a Sept. 10, 2015, rally marking the anniversary of her son's death, Susan Hunt said she had turned down the settlement and would not agree to a provision that barred her from commenting about the case.
Hunt — who fired Sykes and hired new lawyers — argued she should not be bound to the settlement terms because Sykes' representation of her "was ineffective at best," according to court documents.
Heather White, one of the attorneys representing Saratoga Springs, filed a motion to enforce the settlement, which she said had been reached with Sykes on behalf of his client.
Hunt's current lawyers contend that while she agreed to some of the terms, she never signed off on a final settlement. But documents released earlier this year appear to show that Hunt said she would accept a settlement of $850,000 to $900,000 and agree to a nondisparagement clause that limited public comment to what was in a written news release.
Campbell ruled in February that Hunt had agreed to the $900,000 settlement and a gag order about the case and can't back out of the deal.
Sykes claims a retainer agreement signed by Hunt entitles him and his firm, Sykes McAllister Law Offices, to 40 percent of the money they obtained for Hunt, plus costs.
Sykes' attorneys note in court documents that the 40 percent plus costs are to be calculated based only on the portion of the $900,000 received by Susan Hunt, not on the portion received by Curtis Hunt, the only other heir of Darrien Hunt.
Curtis Hunt did sign off on the settlement and has hired his own lawyers, who have asked Campbell to order that the plaintiffs submit the issue of how to divide the settlement proceeds to private binding arbitration.
The father's attorneys say in a brief that while the parents were involved in settlement negotiations with Saratoga Springs, they also had tried on their own to determine a split of any money received, but they were unsuccessful. According to the brief, filed March 4, Susan Hunt and Curtis Hunt had agreed through their lawyers that they would turn to private binding arbitration if they could not reach an "equitable division of settlement proceeds."
The amount being sought by the father has been redacted from court records.
Susan Hunt's new attorneys have argued that state court is the proper forum for the attorney fees issue because it involves the Utah Rules of Professional Conduct.
At Tuesday's hearing, one of the lawyers, Samuel Starks of Atlanta, said the dispute between the parents about the distribution of settlement funds is a probate issue that should be heard in state court.
Attorney Stuart Schultz, who represents Sykes and his law firm, said having Campbell resolve the fee issue would be more efficient than filing another suit in state court.
Schultz also said that "we adamantly disagree" with some of the things said about Sykes' representation of Susan Hunt.
Because of the dispute, the settlement money has been deposited with the court, pending a decision on how it will be distributed.
Darrien Hunt was fatally shot Sept. 10, 2014, by Saratoga Springs police officers responding to a passer-by's 911 call reporting a man with a "samurai" sword walking down the street.
Hunt's relatives say the 22-year-old was cosplaying — or role playing in costume — as a cartoon character and that his sword was not a weapon, but a costume accessory with a rounded blade. The officers say they fired several shots after Hunt swung the sword at them.
The Utah County attorney's office ruled the shooting was justified. Saratoga Springs did not admit any liability in making the settlement.
Twitter: @PamelaMansonSLC