Less than a year after veteran Branson entertainer Jim Stafford closed his theater, he is a party in two Taney County court cases each involving his wife of more than two decades and their business.
Before Metropolitan National Bank filed a
breach of contract suit against Stafford, his wife, Ann Stafford, and their business, Strats Inc., on Aug. 6, Liberty Bank asked the court to settle money claims between the couple involving a Strats Inc. bank account.
On May 14, Liberty Bank filed an interpleader action that named Jim Stafford and Strats as defendants.
“It’s not a common type of case, but whenever a third party has money that they have no claim to, but two or more other parties lay claim to it, and (the third party) doesn’t want to be the one to make a decision as to who has ownership of it, they deposit it with the court in an interpleader suit and let the court decide who has the legitimate claim to the money,” said Rudy Arambulo, an attorney with Tri-Lakes Law Firm LLC in Branson who represents Jim Stafford.
Arambulo said the theater's closure last year was one factor in the money dispute between the couple he confirmed now live in different states. The Metropolitan suit lists Ann Stafford in Hollister, while Jim’s address of record is in Winterhaven, Fla.
“The Jim Stafford show is no longer going on in Branson, and it ultimately stems from that. As you probably know, with a lot of things like that there are different issues that turn up and this is just one of them,” Arambulo said.
According to the case filing, Liberty placed the bank account on an administrative hold Dec. 2 after its representatives became aware of a possible dispute among a portion of the account funds. At the time, the account held a balance of about $24,860.
“The respective claims by the defendants against the plaintiff to the disputed account funds are conflicting, constitute a real and substantial dispute and expose the plaintiff to multiple liability for which the plaintiff has no adequate remedy at law,” the filing reads.
Liberty Bank also asks that the parties pay “reasonable costs including attorney fees” for the action.
Arambulo, who also represents Jim Stafford in the Metropolitan case, declined to comment on the status of the Staffords’ marriage, but said he understands they hadn’t filed for divorce. Arambulo also declined to comment on the Metropolitan suit, noting they have yet to respond to pleadings.
Metropolitan Bank claims the Staffords owe $1.6 million, plus 9 percent interest, on a $3.2 million loan taken out in March 2011, and nearly $90,000, as well as 9 percent interest, on a second $3 million loan issued in August 2008. The lawsuit also calls on the Staffords to pay $75,000 in attorneys' fees, according to court documents.
Arambulo said he expects a judgment on the Liberty money dispute in the next two months.[[In-content Ad]]
