A settlement has been reached in the civil suit between Todd Bertuzzi and Steve Moore.
Geoff Adair, a lawyer for Bertuzzi, confirmed the case has been “settled in its totality” to Canadian Press, but says the terms are confidential.
The settlement comes just weeks before the high-profile trial was set to begin on September 8.
Moore released a statement on Sept. 4 saying the injuries he sustained and the years spent dealing with the legal case have been “long and trying.”
Bertuzzi’s lawyer confirmed the settlement two weeks ago, but Moore’s lawyer, Tim Danson, says that it’s his opinion that there was no “binding and enforceable settlement until the language of the settlement documents was agreed to by all parties,” which he says happened on Sept. 4.
It was more than 10 years ago, on March 11, 2004, that Bertuzzi checked from behind Moore on the ice during a game between the Vancouver Canucks and the Colorado Avalanche.
Moore suffered three fractured vertebrae and a concussion, and hasn’t played an NHL game since.
Moore alleges the Canucks had put a bounty on his head following his check that left their captain Markus Naslund injured.
Bertuzzi pleaded guilty to criminal assault causing bodily harm for the hit and was sentenced in 2006 to one year probation and 80 hours of community service.
Bertuzzi was suspended for the rest of the regular season and the playoffs, which cost him about $502,000, and he didn’t play during the 2004-05 lockout season. But he was reinstated for the 2005-06 campaign and has since continued his career, most recently with Detroit.
– With files from Canadian Press
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