Terra Firma-Citigroup Trial Begins

DAY 1 TERRA VS. CITI: Guy Hands’ lawyer, David Boies, told a nine-member jury that Citibank’s David Wormsley, his longtime colleague and friend,  was “playing two sides of the street at the same time,” in the first day of the Terra Firma-Citibank trial in a N.Y. courtroom today. Boies said e-mail evidence would show that Wormsley “secretly promised EMI to use his relationship with Guy Hands and Terra Firma to help it obtain added value.” The bank’s lawyer, Ted Wells, insisted that Citigroup’s evidence would show that Hands only sued the bank when he realized his EMI acquisition was going to be a failure. “There was no fraud, no lies,” testified Wells. “Nobody tricked him.” Tim Pryce, Terra Firma’s chief executive and former general counsel, testified Wormsley told him over the phone four days before the auction, that the private equity firm would have to act quickly if it wanted to acquire the music group. He also testified that, after the deal, Hands asked him to check into rumors that rival private equity firm Cereberus had not submitted a binding bid for EMI at the time. (10/18p)