Sheel Seidler sues in-laws for control of Padres

Sheel Seidler sues in-laws for control of Padres

The widow of the deceased owner of the San Diego Padres, Sheel Seidler, filed a lawsuit against her brothers-in-law Matthew and Robert on Monday. The goal is to prevent her other brother-in-law John from taking control of the team instead of her.

Background of the lawsuit

The lawsuit comes at a time when the Padres are among the teams competing for the Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki advertise. In a petition filed in the probate court of Travis County, Austin, Texas, Sheel Seidler sued Matthew, the executor of Peter Seidler's estate, and Robert, the former executor. She accuses them of acts of disloyalty, fraud and highhandedness.

Allegations against Robert's wife

Sheel accuses Robert's wife, Alecia, of sending several "racist, profane and hateful communications" toward her. According to the complaint, the defendants' actions were intended to force Sheel, a woman of Indian descent, out of what was viewed as a family business and inheritance.

Demands from Sheel Seidler

Sheel requests that Matthew be barred from any actions on behalf of the Seidler Foundation and removed as trustee. She is asking the court to invalidate any action that would appoint someone other than Sheel as controller of the Padres. In a statement, Sheel said: "I made this decision as a last resort, but I am confident that it is the right and best option to protect the Padres franchise and ensure that the vision that Peter and I had for the team continues."

Statement from the Peter Seidler Trust

The Peter Seidler Trust issued a statement calling the lawsuit “completely without merit.” The statement said: "Peter had a clear estate plan. The plan specifically named three of his nine siblings, with whom he had worked closely over many decades, as successor trustees of his trust. Peter himself prohibited Sheel from ever serving as trustee."

Peter Seidler's legacy and current developments

Peter Seidler, a grandson of late Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley, was an investor in the group that took over the Padres starting in 2012. On November 18, 2020, he succeeded Ron Fowler as the team's controller and died on November 14, 2023 at the age of 63. Three days later, the team appointed Eric Kutsenda, a business partner of Peter Seidler, as interim controller. On December 21, San Diego announced that John would become controller, but this still had to be approved by Major League Baseball owners.

Financial situation of the Padres

The San Diego Padres, who have never won a World Series title, have cut major league player salaries from a record $257 million in 2023 to $166 million at the start of the 2024 season. "The coverage of the Padres' salary cuts, lowering of their expectations and implicit abandonment of pursuit of a World Series title would have been a severe blow to Peter," the lawsuit states.

More allegations and family tensions

The lawsuit presented a document purportedly handwritten by Peter Seidler that listed Sheel and her children as his preference for future controller. In a letter dated October 15, 2023, Matthew Sheel reportedly said she did not have the "experience, skills and financial acumen" to take on the responsibilities of this important role. "Instead of appointing Sheel as Controller of the Padres - which contradicts Peter's advice and the person whose interests would best align with the Seidler Trusts - Defendants are attempting to force the appointment of their brother John as Controller," the lawsuit says.

Conclusion and current statements

"By doing so, they place control of the Padres and the significant interests of the Seidler Trusts in the hands of a third party and enjoy the appearance and benefits of being a primary owner. In the meantime, Defendants have expelled Sheel from the Padres organization, depriving her of the benefits she could have had as the baseball team's largest beneficiary owner," the lawsuit continues. The trust clarified that “the trustee has sole responsibility for appointing the next controller of the San Diego Padres,” adding that Sheel agreed in a 2020 deposition that she had no right to the controller designation and would not intervene in the named controller’s affairs.

Matthew and Robert are accused of attempting to sell the trusts' interest in Seidler Kutsenda Management Co. short and abandoning the sale when that attempt became public. “Alecia made it clear that Sheel was an outsider and not worthy of being part of the Seidler family,” the lawsuit says. It was also alleged that Robert and Matthew made it clear that Sheel and her children were not welcome in the Padres stadium's ownership area, Petco Park.

CNN reached out to the Padres for comment, but MLB declined to comment.