Sonics owner accuses Seattle of duplicity

Associated Press

SEATTLE -- Sonics owner Clay Bennett accuses the city of Seattle of duplicity in the Key Arena lawsuit.

In papers filed in federal court in Seattle, Bennett's lawyers say the city is dishonestly using the lawsuit in an attempt to force him to sell the team to a local group led by Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer.

The filing Wednesday asks the court to unseal confidential documents and reveal what the lawyers call "significant duplicity."

Former Sen. Slade Gorton, who is representing Seattle in its lawsuit, told The Seattle Times it was the Sonics, not the city, that started the fight over the Key Arena lease by trying to end it two years early and move to Oklahoma City.