Fresno State’s Save Mart Center naming rights payment at center of legal fight

Two companies are vying for Fresno State’s final payout for the Save Mart Center naming rights deal it struck nearly 30 years ago. 

Fresno State is asking the Fresno County Superior Court to intervene in a dispute between the two companies – The Wilkinson Group and Mentor Capital. 

Driving the news: Fresno State hired The Wilkinson Group in 1997 to secure a naming rights deal for the arena that would become the Save Mart Center when it opened in 2003. 

The Wilkinson Group received an annual payment of $180,000 from Fresno State for securing the Save Mart Center’s $40 million, 23-year deal. 

But Mentor Capital – a company based out of Plano, Texas – says it should be paid. 

The big picture: Fresno State filed an interpleader complaint in the Fresno County Superior Court last month asking for help, according to a report from GV Wire. 

Zoom in: Mentor Capital purchased the rights for Fresno State’s future payments to The Wilkinson Group in 2015, per the report. 

Mentor Capital took control of the remaining 11 payments worth around $1.3 million. 

While The Wilkinson Group has sent the checks to Mentor Capital throughout most of that period, Mentor Capital went directly to Fresno State for payment the last two years, with The Wilkinson Group also sending an invoice to the university. 

What they’re saying: Fresno State Executive Director of Auxiliary Services Nicole Lane told GV Wire that the university filed the interpleader so a judge could ensure that the university was not placed in the middle of a private contractual dispute. 

Fresno State said it is willing to give the money to the court and be discharged from all liability.