Lawsuit: Justice Companies Never Paid $2m Due In Coal Deal

The Associated Press BECKLEY, W.Va. - A lawsuit says two of billionaire Jim Justice's affiliated companies owe $2 million from a 2013 coal deal.In a complaint Tuesday in Beckley federal court, Pennsylvania resident Thomas K. Lampert sued Tams Management, Inc. in Beckley and Southern Coal Corporation, a Delaware company doing business in Roanoke, Virginia.The lawsuit says the companies didn't pay $2 million from a March 2013 agreement for equity and membership interests in Newgate Development of Beckley, LLC.The complaint says Lampert's trust never received $4 per ton for the first 500,000 tons of coal mined, which the companies agreed to pay.It seeks $2 million, damages, attorneys' fees, interest and any other court-ordered relief.Southern Coal declined immediate comment.Justice has begun a 2016 Democratic bid for West Virginia governor.