Tom Golisano, Monica Seles testify in suit against decorator

Billionaire Thomas Golisano says an interior decorator bilked him out of more than $300,000 when she over-billed him for work on his luxury yacht.

Testimony got underway Monday morning in a civil suit against the decorator, Norma Goldman, and the design company she worked with, Rochester-based Vitoch Interiors.

The Paychex Inc. chairman and founder says he agreed to pay Goldman an hourly rate, plus the cost of furnishings she provided. 

But the central dispute in the case is over the prices billed for those items and whether the decorator had agreed to provide them at wholesale cost without markup. There was never any written agreement between the parties.

Golisano testified that at the start of the project, he insisted that he wouldn't pay for any commissions or "kickbacks to manufacturers."  Goldman agreed she would "share her discounts."

Much of the testimony Monday focused on what "sharing discounts" meant. 

"To me, it means I get 100 percent of the discount," Golisano testified.

Golisano believed that he was getting goods at cost, when in fact they were sold to him at a 220 percent markup. He says he didn't learn this until after the job had been finished and paid for.  The total bill was roughly $850,000.

During cross-examination, the exchanges grew contentious and combative as defense attorney David Rothenburg probed statements Golisano  made during depositions.  Taken out of context, Golisano said, those statements didn't give a clear picture of his understanding of the billing arrangement.

In his opening statement. Rothenberg contended that Golisano never asked for itemized bills and expressed no concerns about costs until a month after the project was completed and paid for. 

His attorney, Glenn Pezullo, said outside court that Golisano felt he'd been taken advantage of.

"It's all about principle for my client in this case," Pezullo said.

Golisano said that once he saw some of the itemized prices, "bells and whistles went off." He said he was charged $10,000 per window for draperies, and $5,800 for a 7-foot-by-7-foot rug.

"If I had seen that, I would have objected immediately," Golisano said.

In court, Golisano testified that he bought the yacht for roughly $50 million shortly before he commissioned Goldman's work.   That vessel, the 240-foot Laurel, is based off the coast of West Palm Beach, Florida. Golisano said he charters the boat to other people for $525,000 a week.

Golisano's wife, Monica Seles, testified that she grew concerned about the costs when the couple took the yacht for a two-week cruise to Europe in June 2014. 

"What stood out to me was the number of pillows in one room where Tom was playing cards," Seles testified in court Monday. "There were so many I couldn't sit down on the couch."

The former tennis star began to question why there were so many pillows, and how much had been paid for pillows that would never be used.

Golisano didn't know the answer, but when the couple returned to Rochester, he confronted Goldman.  He asked to see invoices from her suppliers which showed her costs on the items purchased.  When she declined, he threatened to sue.

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Goldman, who also decorated Golisano's residence in Mendon, denies promising that the furnishings wouldn't be marked up. She claims Golisano got the same deal on the yacht as he did on his home, which was a discount on the suggested retail price of the furnishings.

According to the complaint, Goldman spent about six months in 2013 and 2014 devising color schemes, wall coverings and window treatments, overseeing the refurbishing of wall panels and built-ins, and having carpets, drapes, bedding and furniture installed on the Laurel.

Her bill came to just under $845,000, which included about $34,000 for 242 hours of work at $150 an hour. Golisano paid in full with a few complaints in June 2014, then rented out the Laurel for a cruise to the Mediterranean.

By the time the Laurel returned a month later with her six staterooms, on-deck hot tub, gym and 20-person crew, Golisano had concluded that he'd been had to the tune of $315,000 and notified Goldman that he planned to sue.

The trial will continue Tuesday morning, with attorneys saying it will likely wrap up by Wednesday. 

SLAHMAN@Gannett.com