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Report: Broncos ownership trust possibly headed for legal battle after family member files complaint

At least two of Pat Bowlen’s seven children are interested in taking control of the Broncos. (AP Photo)
At least two of Pat Bowlen’s seven children are interested in taking control of the Broncos. (AP Photo)

The Denver Broncos ownership situation could be headed for an extremely messy legal battle after Bill Bowlen, brother of Broncos owner Pat Bowlen, filed a complaint in state court against his brother’s trustees, Joe Ellis, Rich Slivka and Mary Kelly, according to Nicki Jhabvala of The Athletic.

The complaint reportedly seeks to remove the three trustees from their roles as agents of Pat Bowlen, who stepped away from running the Broncos due to Alzheimer’s, and appoint an independent conservator to run the trust.

Bill Bowlen reportedly stands to gain nothing financially with the petition, which could eventually play a role in deciding which of Pat Bowlen’s seven children will take control of the team.

What led to the Broncos ownership lawsuit?

Rewind back to 2013, when Pat Bowlen officially stepped away from his role as the controlling owner of the team due to Alzheimer’s.

In his place, the three trustees were put in charge of running the team and executing the owner’s long-term succession plan, in which his seven children retain control of his team. Of those seven, would take over the team as controlling owner when they were ready to run a billion-dollar franchise.

The trusteers reportedly outlined what criteria those children would have to meet:

In February 2015, the trustees sent a letter to Annabel Bowlen, Pat’s wife, and his seven children, outlining the criteria that had to be met before they’d be considered for controlling say: things like leadership, integrity and sound judgment were mentioned, but there were more specific demands, like a bachelor’s degree plus either an MBA, law degree or another advanced business-related degree, and five years of “senior management experience” with the NFL, Broncos or the Stadium Manage Company, which runs the team’s home stadium.

One of those children, Beth Bowden Wallace, stepped forward this year to indicate her interest in becoming controlling owner. Beth, Pat’s second-oldest child at 47 years old, seemed to have a solid case that she was ready, spending three years as the Broncos’ director of special projects and earning a law degree from the University of Denver.

Bill Bowlen threw his support behind Beth, saying she was “in the best position of all the children to take over now.” Bill had originally helped Pat buy the team in 1984, helping his brother cover the full purchase price then selling his stake back to him in 2002.

Despite Beth’s qualifications and Bill’s support, the three trustees rejected her bid, saying she is “not capable or qualified at this time.”

According to The Athletic, Ellis reportedly prefers Brittany Bowlen, Pat’s second-youngest child at 28 years old, as his favored candidate to become controlling owner. Brittany holds an MBA from Duke and works full-time for McKinsey & Co. Consulting in Denver.

Bill Bowlen has since filed his complaint, castigating the trustees for supposedly ignoring his brother’s wishes and holding conflicts of interest.

In response, the trustees released a statement noting that Bill Bowlen and Beth Bowlen Wallace share an attorney, possibly another conflict of interest in this situation.

And here we are.

Who could end up owning the Broncos?

It is important to clarify that whatever happens between Beth and Brittany, they are reportedly fighting for the controlling ownership stake, not actual ownership of the team. The Athletic reports that it is believed each of Bowlen’s children will get an equal stake in the team, but only one will take over as the team’s top decision-maker.

However, Ellis also reportedly insinuated before training camp this year that the team could be sold, another variable in an already complex equation.

One more variable is Bill Bowlen claiming that Pat Bowlen did not have the required capacity to set up the trust in 2009 when he placed Ellis, Slivka and Kelly in charge of the team in his absence.

Clearly, this could go in any number of ways. Full control over one of the NFL’s 32 teams is possibly at stake, and that means there could be plenty of palace intrigue in Denver.

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