REDWOOD CITY, Calif. (KRON) — Attorneys representing “Hillsborough Heiress” Tiffany Li have agreed to settle a wrongful death civil lawsuit with a murder victim’s mother, Colleen Cudd.
The murder victim was Keith Green, the father of Li’s two daughters and her ex-boyfriend. Green was shot execution-style in Li’s Hillsborough mansion on April 28, 2016 and his body was dumped in a field north of San Francisco, according to prosecutors.
Cudd sued Li as a way of seeking justice after a San Mateo County jury found Li not guilty on all charges at her 2019 criminal trial.
District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe told KRON4 that he still believes Li was the mastermind behind Green’s death, but his prosecutors didn’t have enough evidence to prove her guilt to a jury.
Wednesday’s hearing only lasted for five minutes. Judge Danny Chou held the hearing over Zoom because of COVID concerns.
A civil trial was scheduled to begin in two weeks, but Judge Chou vacated the trial because of the settlement agreement.
Li and her family are worth millions. Their wealth comes from owning and selling real estate in both the San Francisco Bay Area and China.
“Cudd seeks wrongful death damages for the loss of love and companionship of her son,” Cudd’s attorney, Donald Magilligan, wrote in court documents.
Cudd told KRON4 in 2019 that she believes Li is “evil.” “She orchestrated all of this,” Cudd said.
How much money did Li agree to pay Cudd to prevent the lawsuit from moving forward to a trial?
The terms of the settlement were not discussed during the hearing.
Court documents revealed that Li agreed to pay Cudd $150,000 to avoid being put on trial in a civil courtroom.
“There is no question that defendant Li bears a substantial share of liability, on a comparative fault basis, for the wrongful death of Green. Plaintiff Cudd’s loss of her only son is estimated to warrant a recovery of eight figures,” Magilligan wrote.
One-hundred-fifty-thousand is far below “eight figures,” meaning, between $10,000,000 – $99,999,999.
Magilligan told KRON4 that under California law, it would have been very difficult for Cudd to win a settlement beyond $150,000.
Li will pay $150,000 “in satisfaction of all claims for damages, costs and expenses, attorneys’ fees and interest. In exchange, plaintiff Cudd will move to dismiss her claims against defendant Li,” Magilligan wrote in court documents.