A fresh court filing by the Dallas Stars has poured gasoline on a months-long, high-stakes feud with the Dallas Mavericks, accusing Mavericks ownership of shifting the team's principal office to Las Vegas in 2024 during the recent ownership transfer. The Stars say that change undercuts the Mavericks' contract claims and turns what began as a fight over renovations and rent at American Airlines Center into a broader battle over who controls the arena and its future development. Both teams insist games will go on as scheduled for now, but the dispute is barreling toward a jury trial early next year.
In an amended counterclaim, the Stars allege the Mavericks changed their principal location to Las Vegas in 2024 and argue the NBA club engaged in the very conduct they allege entitles them to take full control of the American Airlines Center, according to WFAA. The filing, flagged by the station on Wednesday night, also asks a judge to reopen a 2011 bankruptcy case and contends that the Mavericks and the City of Dallas were on notice years ago about the Stars' Frisco operations.
Mavericks' lawsuit and withheld payments
The legal slugfest started when the Mavericks filed a sprawling petition in Texas Business Court late in October, seeking injunctive relief and a ruling that the Stars breached a 1998 franchise clause requiring their headquarters to be in Dallas, according to the Chron. Mavericks ownership says it has frozen the Stars' quarterly arena distributions and parked the money in escrow until the dispute is resolved. The Stars have blasted that move as harmful and say the withheld funds are in the tens of millions.
Stars' legal pushback
The Stars counter that the Mavericks have no authority to declare a breach and accuse their NBA neighbors of an attempted hostile takeover of the arena's operating company, as laid out in the amended counterclaim and detailed by The Dallas Morning News. The Stars are asking the court to enforce a prior bankruptcy confirmation order from 2011, arguing that the Mavericks knew about the club's Frisco facilities during that process and cannot suddenly treat them as a problem now. Lawyers for both sides say they remain open to settlement, but the increasingly sharp filings suggest they are prepared to let a jury sort it out.
Court timetable
A jury trial is set for Monday, Jan. 26, 2026, in the Texas Business Court before Judge Bill Whitehill, according to The Texas Lawbook. Attorneys on both sides expect aggressive discovery in the coming months, digging into operating agreements, financial records, and the escrowed funds. The teams publicly say they prefer a negotiated peace, but they have clearly reserved the right to push every issue in front of a jury.
Why this matters for Dallas
Beneath the legal wrangling sits a much bigger question for Dallas: what happens to American Airlines Center and the development around it? Both teams' leases at the arena run through 2031, and the Stars have openly explored suburban options while the Mavericks pursue a new basketball-only arena, as Reuters reported. City officials have urged both organizations to keep talking and stressed the economic punch that two major pro teams bring to downtown.
If this litigation alters who owns or runs American Airlines Center, the fallout would not stop at the loading dock. Hotel, retail, and entertainment projects that have grown up around the arena over the decades could be rethought or reshaped. Expect a flurry of motions and discovery battles before the case ever reaches a jury next winter, with early hearings watched closely for any sign the teams might settle. For now, though, the on-ice and on-court action in Dallas continues while the lawyers fight for control of the building that hosts it.
