Rock singer Rod Stewart had a $2 million verdict against him for a concert he never performed at Harrah's finalized by a judge on Friday. U.S. District Judge Larry Hicks also tacked on $981,926 in interest on the outstanding debt. Photo by Jeff Scheid.

A judge on Friday finalized a $2 million verdict against rocker Rod Stewart for a concert he never performed at Harrah's, and the judge also tacked on another $981,926 in interest on the outstanding debt.

In addition, U.S. District Judge Larry Hicks ordered Stewart's attorneys to pay a $153,483 in sanctions for failing to turn over information to Harrah's attorneys before a 2005 civil trial in the case.

Stewart's attorney, Louis "Skip" Miller, declined comment on the sanctions Friday, but he said Stewart is headed to the appellate courts in an attempt to overturn the verdict.

"We don't agree with the verdict," Miller said. "We intend to appeal and we expect to get it reversed."

According to the lawsuit, the Rio paid Stewart $3 million in 1999 for a millennium eve concert at the off-Strip property. Attorneys for the Rio claim that days before the show, Stewart's business operatives were adamant about getting a contract for a second show at the Rio for Stewart the following day.

With Stewart's handlers threatening to pull Stewart out of the millennium show because of the stalled negotiations, the Rio agreed to pay Stewart $2 million in advance for another show the following New Year's weekend at the Rio.

The millennium concert went on as planned, but in 2000, Stewart was diagnosed with thyroid cancer, and the second concert for December 2000 was canceled.

Attorneys for the Rio said Stewart then kept the $2 million for the second show, and he has refused to reimburse the resort.

The Rio sued and in a civil trial that culminated in September, a jury awarded the Rio the $2 million verdict.

Rio attorney Steve Morris said the failure by Stewart's camp to give Rio attorneys information about Stewart's prior business dealings put the Rio at a significant disadvantage leading up to the trial.

"What they did was they failed to produce information pertinent to the subject matter of the lawsuit, and they failed to do so repeatedly," Morris said. "It cost us a lot of time and an awful lot of money."

Morris said the Rio now will go to the courts and seek to have Stewart pay for all of the Rio's attorneys fees.

"A very substantial amount of money," Morris said.

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