Jordan Bitove is set to take control of Torstar after a business dispute with partner Paul Rivett was sent to meditation-arbitration.

First reported by the Toronto Star and The Globe and Mail, and later confirmed in a statement from Torstar, the resolution will see Bitove take ownership of Torstar, the company that owns Toronto Star, Hamilton Spectator, iPolitics, The Kit, ScoreGolf and community news publisher Metroland Media, among other properties. Bitove will also retain a stake in VerticalScope, which operates a portfolio of websites geared towards different interest-based communities. Rivett will be departing Torstar.

Bitove and Rivett were equal partners in NordStar Capital, an investment firm that acquired Toronto Star parent company Torstar in 2020. Its other holdings include NordStar Gaming, an online gambling site. Prior to starting the firm, Bitove was CEO of experiential marketing firm Vision Companies and part of the ownership group that created the Toronto Raptors. Rivett is a former president of Fairfax Financial.

In September, Rivett filed an application to Ontario Superior Court seeking a court order to dissolve the company. He citied a “deadlock” between the partners as to the best way forward and being “sidelined” from decisions Bitove made that deviated from their previous plans. In a statement, Bitove responded by saying those who “believe in the vital role of the media” build sustainable businesses around trusted journalism, rather than “shrink newsrooms to extract short-term benefit for shareholders.”

Last week, Bitove and Rivett made their first public appearance since their disagreement became public at a launch event for a TVO documentary about the newspaper. During a panel discussion, the pair agreed that they did not see a path forward to reconciling their relationship, while also attempting to reinforce their respective positions on the best path forward.

Bitove emphasized the role of the Toronto Star as a civic institution and adhering to the Atkinson Principles, the social values that have guided the path of the newspaper throughout its history. He also pushed for measures like the Online News Act, which would prevent major tech companies from “stealing ad money” from Canadian news outlets.

Rivett, on the other hand, said he was opposed to long-term news subsidies, saying instead that the best path forward would be to experiment with new revenue streams, like online gambling, as well as greater co-operation between the sales and news side of the company.

Both parties, however, had a mixed outlook about Torstar’s future. They agreed that they wanted the “distraction” of their dispute to be settled quickly, as the company has strong momentum. But Rivett also said the paper may need to “embrace failure” and bankruptcy could help it build back smaller, which could be possible as Torstar is losing $1 million per week. Bitove said the data that helps the Star understand its audience was important for the future – and that without it, “we go out of business even quicker.”