Ex-hedge fund manager gets $25M payday in Beats suit

An ex-hedge fund manager who claims to have been squeezed out of Beats Electronics by co-founders Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine ended four years of legal maneuvering with a $25 million payday.

A Los Angeles jury in state court handed down the award to Steven Lamar on Wednesday after a three-week trial that ended with three days of deliberation.

Lamar first filed suit in 2014, claiming he took the idea for Beats headphones to Dre and Iovine in 2006.

After a falling out, Lamar exited the business relationship for a cut of royalties from Beats sales.

Lamar contended he was owed $130 million in royalties from a dozen models of the headphone, while Dre and Iovine countered the settlement was meant to cover only the original Beats Studio.

The initial case was dismissed but then revived by an appeals court.

Wednesday’s 12-member jury verdict in favor of Lamar credited him with royalties for sales on three Beats models: the Studio 2 Remastered, the Studio 2 Wireless and the Studio 3.

The verdict — which needed nine jurors to win the case, just cleared the minimum with a vote of 9-3 — did not break down individual amounts to be paid by Dre and Iovine, although neither appears to be hurting.

The co-founders sold Beats to Apple for $3 billion shortly before Lamar brought his suit against the pair in 2014.