File photo The historic Greenbrier Resort in White Sulphur Springs.

CHARLESTON – Leaders of the West Virginia Democratic Party said claims in an updated federal lawsuit by a major hotel company against U.S. Sen. Jim Justice over the historic Greenbrier Resort warrant further scrutiny.

The state Democratic Party issued a press release Monday calling on the Senate Ethics Committee to investigate Justice, R-W.Va., to open an investigation in the junior senator’s alleged actions regarding the Greenbrier, which Justice purchased in 2009 and is at the heart of a federal and state lawsuit.

Attorneys for White Sulphur Springs Holdings LLC (WSSH), the company owned by Texas-based Omni Hotels and Resorts parent company TRT Holdings, filed amended motions Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia asking for the Greenbrier to be placed in receivership and a temporary injunction to halt the Justice family from interfering in the operations of the hotel.

TRT Holdings created WSSH after purchasing the Greenbrier loan debt previously held by Virginia-based Carter Bank and Loan in a sale at the beginning of April. Not long after purchasing the debt, WSSH filed a lawsuit against Jim Justice, former first lady Cathy Justice, their son Jay Justice, the Greenbrier Hotel Corp. and other Justice-owned companies affiliated with the Greenbrier.

According to the May 1 first amended verified complaint filed by attorneys for WSSH, the two parties met on April 6 to negotiate a settlement regarding the remaining $141 million owed by the Justice family as of the most recent amended and restated forbearance agreement.

“At that meeting, the Senator and his counsel threatened WSSH if it continued collection efforts, informing WSSH that the Justice Defendants had influence over or appointed all the state court judges in West Virginia and that WSSH could not get a fair trial in West Virginia,” according to the filing. “…The Justice Defendants’ blatant disregard for the Greenbrier Resort – including the physical property, employees, and vendor relationships – forced WSSH to turn to the Court despite these threats.”

Del. Mike Pushkin, the chairman of the state Democratic Party, called on Justice to address these claims and provide clarification.

“That allegation alone should send shockwaves through every corner of our state,” said Pushkin, D-Kanawha. “If a sitting U.S. Senator is suggesting that our courts are compromised because of his influence, that is not just unethical, it is a direct threat to the integrity of our judicial system and the rule of law.”

A request for comment from attorneys for the Justice family was not returned. But Justice issued a statement though his Senate office Monday evening.

“For me, serving West Virginia has never been about a title. It’s been a lifelong mission,” Justice said. “As a businessman, as Governor, and now in the Senate, my only goal has been to work for the people of my state. It’s a shame to see that kind of dedication questioned for the sake of a political point, but I know the people of this state know my heart. I’ve never wavered in my commitment to them, and I’m certainly not going to start now.”

Attorneys for the Justice family filed their own case in Greenbrier County Circuit Court April 12 alleging that TRT Holdings and Carter Bank engaged in a deceptive conspiracy to orchestrate a hostile takeover of the Greenbrier by unlawfully selling and acquiring the hotel’s debt. TRT Holdings has denied these claims.

The case was assigned to 29th Judicial Circuit Judge Robert E. Richardson. According to the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals, Richardson was first appointed to the bench in 2014 by former governor Earl Ray Tomblin, elected in 2016, and re-elected in 2024.

“If Jim Justice is going to make or allow claims that he ‘controls’ judges in West Virginia, then he owes the public full transparency,” Pushkin said. “He should immediately name the specific judges he believes he influences, and those names should be submitted to the West Virginia Supreme Court for review.”

In the Greenbrier County case, attorneys for Justice accused WSSH/TRT Holdings of attempting to replace employees of the historic Greenbrier Resort with workers from a nearby hotel and eliminate competition for the historic Omni Homestead Resort and Spa in Hot Springs, Va., located 40 miles away.

“It’s telling – but not surprising – that the West Virginia Democratic Party is siding with an out-of-state corporate giant that would import workers from Virginia over a local family business, which has consistently invested in West Virginia and its people,” said Del. Josh Holstein, R-Boone, chairman of the West Virginia Republican Party, in a statement Monday afternoon.

“Once again, the state Democratic Party is putting outside interests ahead of local jobs, local ownership, and the long-term economic future of West Virginia communities to play politics,” Holstein continued. “Senator Justice’s record of selfless service to our state through eight years as governor and now in Washington speaks for itself. The West Virginia Democratic Party should be ashamed of themselves.”

The Democratic Party also raised concerns about claims made in the federal lawsuit by WSSH/TRT Holdings that accused the Justice family of using revenues from the Greenbrier and diverting those funds to other Justice-owned companies while not paying obligations to employees and local, state and federal taxes.

“These issues paint a deeply disturbing picture of misplaced priorities and a pattern of behavior that raises serious ethical and legal questions,” Pushkin said. “West Virginians deserve to know whether one of our United States Senators has been using the Greenbrier Resort as a personal piggy bank while workers and taxpayers are left holding the bag.”

“While these allegations describe millions being shifted between businesses and spent on luxury assets, we have seen workers at Justice-owned companies struggle with unpaid benefits and uncertainty,” said Teresa Toriseva, vice chairwoman of the state Democratic Party. “If these claims are true, it represents a fundamental betrayal of the people who built those businesses and the communities that depend on them.”