An attorney for private investors says California officials had no legal basis to stop the $2.3 billion sale of 11 state properties that the state would then lease back.
A San Francisco judge heard opening statements Tuesday from Angela Agrusa, the attorney for the investment group California First, on the first day of a trial over the group's lawsuit to try to force the sale.
She says California broke a contract because of a change in policy and then made up explanations to try to validate the decision.
The sale was championed by former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger as a way to help the state plug a budget deficit. But Gov. Jerry Brown pulled the plug on the plan in 2011 after independent analysts said it would end up costing the state as much as $1.5 billion.
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