Deposition Date Set for Pilot Flying J CEO Jimmy Haslam

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Pilot Flying J CEO Jimmy Haslam will take part in a videotaped deposition regarding lawsuits over rebate fraud at the truck stop chain on Dec. 13, reported the Knoxville News Sentinel.

The deposition, for which Haslam will be under oath, "will continue from day to day until completed," wrote Charles Cooper, an attorney for Pilot, in a court notice filed Nov. 17 in Franklin County, Ohio.

Multiple trucking companies are suing Haslam and Pilot Flying J after the FBI and the IRS raided the company's headquarters on April 15, 2013, leading to charges of fraud over fuel rebates promised to customers. Pilot has since paid a $92-million settlement to the U.S. Department of Justice and $85 million in a class-action civil lawsuit.

Haslam, who denied any knowledge of the rebate scheme, does not face criminal charges. He agreed to participate in the deposition in May 2016 after he unsuccessfully appealed an order to do so, as CSNews Online previously reported. His attorney Stephen D. Brody then requested a coordinated effort between remaining civil plaintiffs so that Haslam will only be deposed once.

Knoxville-based Pilot Flying J operates more than 650 travel stops in North America.