The price for Wanamaker is in dispute.

Carter Hawley Hale Stores, which sold its John Wanamaker department store chain in Philadelphia late last year to Woodward & Lothrop, filed suit earlier this month in an effort to resolve negotiations challenging the purchase price of $183 million. Since paying that amount, Woodward, a unit of Taubman Investment Co., has decided to seek a $57-million reduction on a pretax basis and has filed a countersuit in federal court to force the issue into arbitration. Carter Hawley contends that $26 million of the requested reduction involves issues that were previously resolved but said it “is more than willing to go to arbitration” over the remaining $31 million.