Earlier this week came news that Balls Hamburgers, the burger joint that presumably predates ball jokes, was suing its landlord for over $1 million for breach of contract. And now, to spice things up even more, the four entities that act as landlord of Balls' North Dallas restaurant have issued a countersuit for the eerily similar amount of $1 million.
The counter-suit claims that Balls owner Richard Hobrecht, who died in 2009, secretly transferred ownership of the restaurant to a group called Backbone Corporation, which is listed as a plaintiff in the initial lawsuit. It also alleges that Balls is currently occupying the landlord's property without a lease.
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The lease for Balls expired in April 2013, though current owner Carol Hobrecht claims it has an automatic extension to April 2018. The landlords counter that after April it switched to a monthly lease. It won't be until late 2014 that any of this actually arrives in court, but it should be interesting to see what shakes out in the end, and if the stakes get any higher.
