Atlanta Spirit, LLC

Atlanta Spirit, LLC is a partnership headquartered at 101 Marietta St., Atlanta, GA. They own the NBA's Atlanta Hawks and the NHL's Atlanta Thrashers, as well as Philips Arena. The nine partners who comprise the group are Steve Belkin, Michael Gearon, Jr., Bruce Levenson, Ed Peskowitz, J. Rutherford Seydel, Todd Foreman, J. Michael Gearon, Sr., Bud Seretean, and Beau Turner [ [http://www.philipsarena.com/Content/view.aspx?CID=368106e3-8d91-4dfe-a026-94f60f0c255b Philips Arena press release] ] . These nine businessmen are divided into three groups, each headquartered in Atlanta, Washington, D.C., and Boston, and each group shares equal voting power within the group. In the summer of 2005, the Atlanta Hawks finalized a trade with the Phoenix Suns to obtain shooting guard Joe Johnson for Boris Diaw and two protected future first-round picks. While this trade met with the approval of the majority of the ownership group, it was rejected by Steve Belkin, who held a controlling vote as the Hawks Governor within the group. This triggered legal proceedings to force Belkin out of the group, which persist to this day.

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