MJ Video Case Finally Over

Onetime Michael Jackson attorney Mark Geragos and his law partner have settled a lawsuit for $2.5 million against the owner of XtraJet, a defunct charter jet company, almost 10 years after it secretly recorded Jackson and his lawyers as they flew from Las Vegas to Santa Barbara to surrender MJ on child molestation charges.

Geragos and partner Pat Harris are going to have a tough time collecting, though. Defendant Jeffrey Borer is insolvent, his attorney Lloyd Hirschbaum said. The agreement was reached one day before a re-trial in the case was scheduled to begin to determine damages.

Borer attempted to sell the video to media outlets after Jackson’s surrender. Geragos, Harris and their attorney Brian Kabateck argued the lawyers and Jackson had an expectation of privacy on the chartered jet that flew from Las Vegas to Santa Barbara in November 2003. The video, which was never released, also violated the attorney-client privilege, they said.

An appeals court in 2010 threw out a judge’s $20 million award to the attorneys and instead offered them $750,000.
Borer and an associate pleaded guilty to conspiracy two years ago in the videotaping case. Geragos, Harris and Jackson filed the invasion-of-privacy suit against Borer and XtraJet in November 2003. Jackson dropped out as a plaintiff in April 2005.