A former partner of Las Vegas Sands Corp. has begun legal action in the US against the casino operator alleging breach of contract and divulging trade secrets.
Asian American filed a complaint in US District Court in Nevada, and is suing Sands for at least $5 billion in profits.
Sands and Asian American jointly applied for a gaming license in Macau in 2002 but before it was completed, Sands cut ties with Asian American and instead teamed up with Hong Kong operator Galaxy Entertainment.
The Sands-Galaxy partnership was successful in securing the Macau concession amid strong competition from several other gaming operators.
The complaint says Sands terminated the partnership and then submitted an almost identical bid with its new partner Galaxy.
"This is an action for damages arising out of profits owed to the plaintiff by Las Vegas Sands Corp. for use and benefit of the work which ultimately led to the Las Vegas Sands enterprise securing a Macau concessions contract," the complaint said.
Asian American said Sands also disclosed sensitive copyrighted information to Galaxy during the bid process.
Macau is the world’s largest gambling center, bringing in over $45 billion in revenue last year.
