Jim Justice outside The Greenbrier
LEWISBURG – Three new civil lawsuits against companies owned by U.S. Senator Jim Justice and his family allege fraudulent property transfers and unpaid bills tied to The Greenbrier.
On July 8 and July 9, two lawsuits were filed in Greenbrier and Monroe counties, respectively, by New London Tobacco Market and Fivemile Energy against James C. Justice Companies and Oakhurst Club.
The plaintiffs, which already hold a nearly $35 million federal judgment against James C. Justice Companies and Kentucky Fuel Corporation in a separate case, claim James C. Justice Companies improperly moved resort‑related real estate into Oakhurst Club, another Justice company, for no money at a time when the company already faced the Kentucky litigation.
In both cases, the plaintiffs say they sued Justice’s company in 2012 in federal court in Kentucky and won a final judgment on July 3, 2024, for $34,990,986.50. That judgment has since been registered in the Southern District of West Virginia and abstracted into local land records in Greenbrier County and Monroe County, effectively creating judgment liens against Justice assets in those counties, the complaints state.
The Greenbrier County suit focuses on five parcels near the historic resort – identified in the complaint as the Colonial Court property, Old White Hotel property, Lot 27 on Howard’s Creek and related tracts – that James C. Justice Companies quitclaimed to Oakhurst Club in April 2016. The deed, signed by company secretary Stephen W. Ball, expressly recites that the transaction was between “related parties” and that the property was transferred for “no consideration,” according to the filing.
The Monroe County suit targets about 500 acres known as Kates Mountain Farm, straddling Monroe and Greenbrier counties, which the complaint says James C. Justice Companies likewise conveyed to Oakhurst Club by quitclaim deed in April 2016, again between related parties and again for no consideration.
In both actions, the plaintiffs allege those transfers violated West Virginia’s Uniform Fraudulent Transfers Act because Justice’s company was already their debtor and moved valuable real estate to an affiliated entity without “valuable consideration,” allegedly to hinder collection of the Kentucky judgment.
New London Tobacco Market and Fivemile further accuse Oakhurst Club and Justice’s lender, Carter Bank, of participating in a civil conspiracy by using the quitclaimed properties as collateral for fresh borrowing while a major judgment loomed. The complaints say Carter Bank knew about the underlying Kentucky suit, the plaintiffs’ claims and the origin of the properties when it allegedly extended new funds secured by the land.
Along with counts for fraudulent transfer, conversion and conspiracy, the plaintiffs seek relief under West Virginia’s Uniform Declaratory Judgment Act. They ask the courts to set aside the quitclaim deeds and any subsequent pledges of the properties, declare their judgment liens superior to Carter Bank’s interests or any other stakeholders and allow the land to be liquidated with proceeds applied first to satisfy the $34.9 million judgment.
The complaints also seek actual damages, consequential damages, punitive damages, attorney fees and other relief.
The third case, which was filed July 1 in Greenbrier Circuit Court, Hannah Marketing Group – doing business as Guest Research sued the Greenbrier Hotel Corporation over a long‑running contract to measure guest satisfaction and loyalty at resort.
Guest Research says it entered into a written agreement with The Greenbrier in 2013 agreeing to provide detailed online survey systems, real‑time reporting dashboards, seasonal summary reports and consulting support to improve the resort’s Net Promoter Scores and help regain high‑end travel ratings from AAA and Forbes.
The original deal called for annual fees of $21,600, payable in quarterly installments of $5,400 with invoices subject to a 1.5 percent monthly late charge after 30 days.
According to the complaint, the parties later reduced the quarterly fee to $4,350 and the annual fee to $17,400 in January 2021, but The Greenbrier stopped paying after September 2025.
A June 16, 2026, statement shows ten consecutive quarterly invoices from March 2024 through June 2026, each for $4,350, all unpaid, leaving a balance due of $43,500.
Guest Research, which is based in Colorado, alleges breach of contract and, in the alternative, unjust enrichment/quantum meruit, asserting it fully performed its obligations by providing ongoing guest feedback while The Greenbrier continued to accept and benefit from the services without paying.
The suit seeks the $43,500 contract price, pre- and post‑judgment interests, attorney fees, court costs and other relief.
New London Tobacco Market and Fivemile Energy are being represented by Miles Berger and Shawn Romano of Romano & Associates in Charleston as well as by W. Edward Shipe of Brock Shipe Klenk in Knoxville, Tenn. In its suit, Guest Research is being represented by J. Mark Adkins and Sabrina Taylor-Perotti of Bowles Rice in Charleston.
Greenbrier Circuit Court case number 26-C-93 (Guest Research), Greenbrier Circuit Court case number 26-C-97 (Tobacco) and Monroe Circuit Court case number 26-C-21 (Tobacco)
