CityCenter construction trial may stretch up to two years

In the optimistic view, the sprawling litigation concerning the construction of CityCenter will zoom by in just one year for the lucky jury.

Then again, two years appears within the realm.

In any event, the trial that once was supposed to already be under way has now been pushed back to January, as spelled out in a new schedule unveiled at a Friday hearing.

To try to stay on track this time, Clark County District Judge Elizabeth Gonzalez zippered together the case that for several months had been split in to two trials: one concerning the unfinished Harmon hotel and the other the rest of the project. But in keeping with the tenor of the case, at least one attorney raised the possibility of fighting the reunification.

In broad brush terms, general contractor Tutor Perini Building Corp. claims $191.3 million in unpaid bills, including $125 million for itself and the rest for subcontractors. CityCenter, managed and half-owned by MGM Resorts International, has claimed about $300 million for its investment in the Harmon that it says has been rendered useless by shoddy workmanship, plus compensation for other defects.

To pull off a trial, Gonzalez will have to line up a special, supersized courtroom with extra electrical and air conditioning capacity. However, the one currently available has a lease that could expire in mid-trial.

In addition, Gonzalez encouraged the attorneys to narrow the issues so they don’t “alienate the jurors” on a mind-numbing forced march through the minutia of construction change orders. But she acknowledged that a settlement with Perini was not in the cards.

As another complication, she added, “People (on the jury) might get pregnant during a two-year trial.”

“Hopefully, at home,” replied Tutor Perini attorney George Ogilvie III.

Contact reporter Tim O’Reiley at
toreiley@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5290.