Van Buren Township files suit against Visteon

Van Buren Township has filed a lawsuit against Visteon claiming the company has failed to honor an agreement regarding $28 million in bonds the township issued to help fund the automotive supplier world headquarters. Again.
The township claims that Visteon agreed to cover any shortfall in tax revenue as payments are due on the bonds issued by the township in 2003. Visteon denies any such agreement and asserts that the company does not owe the township any money.
The township first filed suit against Visteon in 2015 noting the anticipated shortfall. That suit was dismissed by the court which said the township could not sue claiming a shortfall that had not yet occurred. Both the Michigan Court of Appeals and the Michigan Supreme Court agreed with that decision.

Now, the shortfall has taken place, according to township officials who claim that the revenue shortfall of $618,736 was experienced on Oct. 1. Attorney Kaveh Kashef of Butzel Long notified Visteon of the situation at that time and requested payment to the township for the shortfall. 
Visteon responded through their corporate attorney stating that the claim was rejected and that no money was due the township from the company.
“We tried to responsibly manage financial responsibilities by bringing this shortfall to Visteon's attention when we had certainty of the shortfall amount and the date of its occurrence,” stated township Supervisor Kevin McNamara in a written statement.
“For years, the township told Visteon the shortfall would occur in October 2019. For years, Visteon has been telling the township and the courts that the township's projections are hypothetical or speculative. Well, it's turned out exactly as we projected, and Visteon is still stonewalling us,” McNamara continued.
In the Oct. 8 letter rejecting the demand for payment from the township, J. Benjamin Dolan, an attorney with Dickenson Wright, wrote, “under the language of the agreement, there is simply no money due from Visteon to the township.”
Dolan also said that the township has, “at times acknowledged the weakness of its interpretation of the agreement” and said that the calculation by the township did not comply with the agreement.
Van Buren Township is asking the Wayne County Circuit Court to order Visteon to pay the current shortfall in tax revenue and all other future shortfalls along with attorney fees and court costs. McNamara said the total shortfalls could amount to as much as $28 million.
Kashef said that the shortfalls would now continue to occur every six months.
“Every dollar that the township has to pay is a dollar that could be used to pay other liabilities such as pension liabilities or to pay for services,” he said.