LA Times sues the Register over unpaid fees

The Orange County Register's horrible, terrible, not so good month continues. As threatened, the Los Angeles Times filed a lawsuit today in LA Superior Court claiming that the Register has failed to pay more than $2 million in fees to deliver the paper and committed a breach of contract by jobbing out delivery to another company. Here's how the LAT story puts it:

The Times said the Register has consistently been late on payments for distributing its papers ever since falling behind in April 2013. The Times informed the Register last month that it was in default on the contract and had 30 days to pay.

Instead of paying, the Register switched to alternative vendors earlier this month, breaking its agreement with The Times, according to the lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court. The Times said it terminated the agreement after the Register violated The Times' "exclusive right to deliver" the paper.

The Register now owes the Times at least $2.464 million, the lawsuit said. The Times said its total damages may exceed $4 million.

"The Register has repeatedly broken its promises and breached its agreements," the lawsuit said. "By contrast, The Times performed as it said it would."

No comment yet from the Register's lawyers, the Times says. The Register's recent embarrassing troubles with delivery of the paper began after the change from the Times.

Earlier today Aaron Kushner was replaced as publisher of the Register by Las Vegas casino executive Richard Mirman.