How to Make Friends And Influence People: Pocklington-style
15 years ago
Peter Pocklington, Edmonton’s favourite member of the Oilers organization during its dynasty years, is in trouble again, and Dan Barnes was nice enough to tell the rest of us about it:
The 66-year-old, who now lives in Indian Wells, Calif., is involved in a messy dispute over a golf equipment company, Sonartec, which he purchased with three former business partners about a year ago. One of those former partners, Toru Kamatari, is suing Pocklington for breach of contract.
The saga took a sensational turn when a U.S. Marshall and “four or five other people” showed up at Pocklington’s house “about two weeks ago,” he said Thursday. One of the officers showed Pocklington an order from a Los Angeles judge allowing them to impound about 15 pieces of art, which they proceeded to do.
Pocklington is now claiming that the impounded art belonged to his wife, and is challenging the order in court today. Evidently, Mr Kamatari didn’t stop by Pocklington’s website, or he might have noticed a few of his novel business ideas:
- When forced to compromise, ask for more!
- If you can’t beat them, join them…then beat them!
- If you can’t win, change the rules!
- If you can’t change the rules, ignore them!
Normally, I’d read an article like the one Barnes wrote and assume that there were any number of possible reasons for a business deal falling apart. But with Peter Pocklington, it isn’t overly necessary to try and spread the blame around, because the guy has qualities that are precisely the opposite of Teflon.
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