The Stephens Inc. Building in downtown Little Rock
Stephens Inc. of Little Rock says it should have been paid for work done for an energy company that was recently sold.
The amount Stephens is seeking?
$3.1 million.
In a lawsuit filed this month in U.S. District Court in Little Rock, Stephens said it was hired in December 2016 to help find a buyer for Xoom Energy LLC of Huntersville, North Carolina.
Under the terms of the agreement, Stephens was supposed to gather a list of no more than 15 potential purchasers for approval by Xoom.
Stephens also was supposed to provide other services.
Stephens assembled a list that included NRG Energy Inc. of Princeton, New Jersey, the lawsuit said.
In August 2017, Xoom’s attorney told Stephens that the energy company would terminate its agreement with Stephens in September.
But that wasn’t the end of their business dealings.
In March, Stephens learned from a news release that said NRG was going to buy Xoom for $210 million.
Shortly after that announcement, Xoom told Stephens it wasn’t paying any fees in connection with the transaction closing.
Stephens, however, said that under the terms of their agreement, Xoom owed it 1.5 percent of the $210 million purchase price as a success fee.
Last month, Stephens sent Xoom an invoice for $3.1 million, but Xoom refused to pay it, Stephens said. Stephens filed a lawsuit against Xoom for breach of contract.
Stephens is represented by the Jackson Walker law firm in Dallas.
Xoom didn’t immediately return an emailed request for comment.
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