Subject: Major
Announcement from Feld Entertainment
As most of you know, for more
than a decade our company has been engaged in a protracted legal dispute with a
number of animal rights organizations over the care of Asian elephants with
Ringling Bros. and at the Center for Elephant Conservation.
The trail court
ruled in our favor, was upheld on appeal and awarded us attorney’s fees. We
also initiated our own civil RICO action against the activist groups and their
attorneys for the fraudulent and unethical actions they engaged in throughout
the proceedings. Today we announced a record settlement with the Humane
Society of the United States, the Animal Welfare Institute and other groups and
their attorneys. They have agreed to pay Feld Entertainment $15.75 million to
settle all our claims against them. This of course is in addition to our
earlier $9.3 Million settlement with the
ASPCA, bringing the total amount paid
to our company to more than $25 Million. A settlement of this size, coupled
with multiple court rulings, clearly demonstrates what we have said all along –
we are the experts when it comes to caring for Asian elephants and our animal
welfare programs are the best in the world. The press release announcing this
settlement is attached.
Please share the press
release with whomever you feel appropriate and contact me if you have any
questions.
Tom
Thomas L. Albert
Vice President-Government Relations
Feld Entertainment, Inc.
8607 Westwood Center Drive
Vienna, VA 22182
703-749-5547
