Apollo Founders Must Face Huntsman Suit, Judge Says

Apollo Management LP founders Leon Black and Joshua Harris must defend a lawsuit and face possible damages over a failed $6.5 billion merger between an Apollo unit and Huntsman Corp., a Texas judge ruled yesterday.

Judge Fred Edwards in Conroe, Texas, rejected the private-equity partners’ request to dismiss them from claims that could hold them liable for a portion of any damages faced by Credit Suisse Group AG and Deutsche Bank AG over the deal. Salt Lake City-based Huntsman sued the banks and Apollo seeking $3 billion for refusing to fund Apollo’s buyout of the chemical company. The banks sought to keep Black and Harris in the case as third-party defendants.