Judge Denies Motion to Dismiss Viacom CEO's Suit Over Redstone Trust

By Joe Flint 

The legal battle for future control over Sumner Redstone's $40 billion media empire appears to be headed to trial.

A Massachusetts judge on Thursday denied a motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by Viacom Inc. Chairman and Chief Executive Philippe Dauman and board member George Abrams that seeks to reinstate the pair after they were ousted from the board of National Amusements Inc., the company through which Mr. Redstone controls Viacom and CBS Corp. They also want to be reinstated to a trust that was set up to oversee Mr. Redstone's holdings upon his death or incapacitation.

Messrs. Dauman and Abrams have charged that 93-year-old Mr. Redstone no longer has the mental capacity to make those decisions and that he is being manipulated by his daughter Shari Redstone, who is Viacom's vice chair as well as a member of both the National Amusements board and the trust. Ms. Redstone has denied those allegations.

While Messrs. Dauman and Abrams can claim victory in not having their case dismissed, their request for an immediate medical exam of Mr. Redstone was denied. In his 76-page ruling, Judge George Phelan of the Norfolk County Probate and Family Court said he would review medical records of Mr. Redstone from a previous trial in California that also challenged his competence but was dismissed.

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 28, 2016 13:23 ET (17:23 GMT)

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