Thunderhill Ranch Holdings Sues Former Manager, Others Over Property Near Texas Formula 1 Track in Austin

AUSTIN, Texas, July 30, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Texas entrepreneur Hillary A. Ryan, principal of Austin's Thunderhill Ranch Holdings L.P., has filed a real estate fraud lawsuit against his former financial manager and two real estate holding companies based on claims of a secret deal to acquire a tract of land near the new Circuit of the Americas Formula 1 track in Austin.

Named as defendants in the lawsuit filed in the 126th District Court in Travis County are G.H. "Kam" Kronenberg III and San Antonio holding companies Accelerator Holdings LLC and Land Accelerator LLC.

In his prior role as Mr. Ryan's financial manager, Mr. Kronenberg was responsible for identifying and evaluating investment opportunities. According to the lawsuit, Mr. Kronenberg was working on Mr. Ryan's behalf in June 2010 to purchase slightly more than 78 acres of property adjacent to the land where the Circuit of the Americas facility is now located.

After the purchase contract was signed, the lawsuit says, Mr. Kronenberg advised Mr. Ryan that he planned to exercise an option to terminate the contract based on Mr. Kronenberg's view of the slim chances for the Formula 1 track, and his belief that even if the facility were built, the property would be "frozen out" of the overall Circuit of the Americas development.

However, according to the lawsuit, Mr. Kronenberg knew the facility was likely to be built, greatly increasing the land's value. The lawsuit says Mr. Kronenberg then secured a contract extension and provided an assignment to purchase the property to another of his clients, Accelerator Holdings LLC. According to the claims, the assignment document contained a forgery of Mr. Ryan's signature. The tract eventually was purchased by another of Mr. Kronenberg's clients, Land Accelerator Holdings LLC.

Currently, the land has skyrocketed in value as an integral part of the overall Circuit of the Americas' development. The lawsuit includes claims of breach of fiduciary duty, fraud, tortious interference with an existing contract, and conspiracy by the defendants.

"It is unfortunate that Mr. Ryan was forced to file this lawsuit over what we believe is a clear abuse of a fiduciary relationship," says Eugene "Gene" Egdorf of The Lanier Law Firm, lead counsel for Mr. Ryan. "We're asking the court to hold Mr. Kronenberg and his partners responsible for the millions of dollars in lost profits that Mr. Ryan is owed."

With offices in Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and Palo Alto, The Lanier Law Firm is committed to addressing client concerns with effective and innovative solutions in courtrooms across the country. The firm is composed of outstanding trial attorneys with decades of experience handling cases involving pharmaceutical liability, asbestos exposure, intellectual property, business litigation, product liability, maritime law, bad faith insurance claims, and sports and entertainment law.

For more information on Thunderhill Ranch's fraud lawsuit, please contact J.D. Cargill at 713-659-5200.

SOURCE The Lanier Law Firm