Connecticut Sisters In Court Over Winning Powerball Ticket

Wednesday, August 12, 2009 posted 02:40 AM EDT

Theresa Sokaitis and her sister, Rose Bakaysa, liked to gamble. They played bingo, the lottery and went to Foxwoods Resort Casino.

So in 1995, they made a pact. If either of them hit a jackpot, they would split the winnings.

But Sokaitis, 83, of Cromwell, claims that her sister didn't hold up her end of the agreement when Bakaysa, 87, of Plainville, won a $500,000 Powerball drawing in 2005. Now, the state Supreme Court, in a decision to be officially released today, has ruled that the case can go to trial.

Sokaitis sued her sister for breach of contract in August 2005 when she learned about the Powerball ticket, a ticket that Bakaysa held jointly with her brother, Joseph F. Troy Sr., of Plainville. Lottery officials paid Bakaysa and Troy each $249,999 before taxes.

Before the case could go before a jury, the trial court granted Bakaysa's motion for summary judgment in September 2006, agreeing with Bakaysa that the contract was unenforceable under state law. Sokaitis then filed an appeal.

The state Appellate Court reversed the trial court's decision, prompting Bakaysa to take the case to the state's highest court. The Supreme Court agreed with the Appellate Court's decision that the sisters promised to share any winnings equally and that the consideration for the agreement "was not the money that they won but rather their mutual promises to one another to share in any winnings they received," the justices wrote.

William J. Sweeney Jr., the lawyer representing Bakaysa, said he is not planning to appeal the high court's decision.

Sweeney said that the state Supreme Court did not rule whether the sister's contract was valid. He has argued that the contract, legitimate or not, was revoked by the sisters. The sisters had a falling out more than a year before the Powerball ticket was purchased. He argued that a state gambling law voids any contract like the one the sisters had.

"As long as that statute is there, it's case closed," Sweeney said.

Lawyers for Sokaitis said that she is looking forward to resolving the issue in court.

"Finally, Theresa can have her day in court and get her rightful share of these winnings," said Sam Pollack, a Boston-based lawyer representing Sokaitis. The case could go to trial within the next six months.

Sean R. Higgins, another lawyer for Sokaitis, said he was skeptical when he first heard about the agreement, a claim that people often make about lottery winnings.

"Our initial reaction was, 'Sure you have a contract,'" Higgins said. "And then sure enough, the fax starts ringing and something comes over that's the type of thing that's right out of a movie script."

Pollack said Sokaitis realized her sister had a winning ticket when Sokaitis saw the numbers in the newspaper - numbers she had played with her sister for the past 10 years.

"She definitely felt betrayed," Pollack said. "They had spent a lot of time traveling to Foxwoods together, playing bingo, sharing $5 here, $20 there, but never to the tune of a half million dollars. They were always partners. When she heard that her sister was coming into this huge windfall, what hurt her the most was the sister part of it, the money was secondary. When she found out her sister was sharing the winnings with another sibling, it was a real evil twist that made things even more confusing."

Higgins said that an accountant helped the sisters draw up the contract, which was signed by both sisters.

"In my opinion, I think that this agreement on its face is a valid and enforceable contract," Higgins said.

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