** UPDATED ARTICLE **
Sports Illustrated’s Steven Muehlhausen received the following comment from AEW P.R.:
AEW does not comment on pending litigation.
** ORIGINAL ARTICLE **
Commentator Kevin Kelly along with wrestling duo Brent and Brandon Tate have filed a lawsuit against AEW, making a wide range of accusations following their respective departures from the promotion earlier this year.
Allegations of breach of contract, misclassification of an employee as a contract worker, and defamation were made by the trio of plaintiffs this week in the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County Trial Division.
The formal complaint, which was notably redacted in some parts to protect details of the plaintiffs’ talent contracts, has been obtained by POST Wrestling.
Kelly claims wrongful termination, says he was defamed by co-worker
Kevin Foote (also known as Kevin Kelly), a long-time NJPW commentator who was hired by AEW in 2023 to join the promotion’s new Saturday show Collision, claims he was wrongfully terminated from his deal earlier this year and defamed by broadcast partner Ian Riccaboni in the process.
Foote’s departure from AEW came around the time that he allegedly had a dispute with comments made online by Riccaboni, the lawsuit outlined.
Riccaboni, a named co-defendant in the complaint, is mentioned in the suit due to comments he made online following Foote’s endorsement of the U.S. film “Sound of Freedom.” The movie has been criticized by anti-trafficking advocates as an unfair representation of child trafficking, with some drawing similarities to conspiracy theories shared by far-right group QAnon.
According to the lawsuit, Riccaboni posted that he had “no idea [Foote] was going to promote QAnon movies … I suppose that his name was always in the mix but that QAnon stuff breaks my heart a little bit.”
Foote strongly disputed any ties to QAnon, and argued being linked to the group caused significant damage to his reputation.
The lawsuit claims Riccaboni “intentionally and unjustifiably interfered with the relationship between AEW and Plaintiff Foote.” It was also alleged that Foote suffered mental health and marital relationship issues due to the comment.
Foote claims he filed a complaint within AEW following the comment and was told that Riccaboni was punished for the action, but was never given further details on how he was affected.
The lawsuit also claims that AEW had “tortious interference with contract or business relationship” allegedly preventing Foote from commentating NJPW’s 2024 “All Together” card in May.
Tate Brothers claim Khan defamed them with “no-show” comments
The Tate brothers allege that AEW President Khan falsely said the wrestlers were let go from the promotion after not showing up to events, despite being told that they were being cut “purportedly due to budget cuts.”
In early April, the Tate brothers were among a wave of cuts AEW made. The duo were most known for their work as “The Boys” alongside ROH talent Dalton Castle. When asked about the reason why he let the team go, Khan mentioned during a media call that they “didn’t show up” for events.
“[The Tate brothers] didn’t show up for work on more than one occasion,” Khan said on the call in April. “And it’s not acceptable and I think the whole locker room knew about it and you can’t do that and that’s it and that’s why I had to make a tough call.”
“This statement is demonstrably unproven and false,” the complaint states.
The termination of their contracts resulted in not being paid the remaining amounts of their deals, not being paid royalty amounts or travel expenses, the complaint says.
Lawsuit looks to invalidate arbitration clause, classify AEW talent as employees
The lawsuit also features complaints about an arbitration provision that both Foote and the Tate brothers are subject to through their AEW agreements, which would require them to resolve any legal disputes with the promotion through private mediation instead of in public court. The plaintiffs argue that the clause is “unconscionable and unenforceable.”
Claims that the plaintiffs were not provided with a comprehensive list of rules and procedures around arbitration, were not advised regarding the limitations of the discovery process, and had no ability to proceed in forma pauperis, were among the reasons why they deemed the agreement “unreasonably fair to AEW.”
The complaint also mentions that AEW talent and wrestlers are misclassified as contract workers when they should be considered employees.
A long list of requirements from the promotion was included in the complaint, arguing that the degree of control involved with being an AEW talent or wrestler entails that they are employees and not contractors.
“AEW has extensive policies and procedures implemented at their sole discretion that are applicable to the Talent and Wrestlers inside the ring; on AEW premises; and outside of the ring, such as the policies regarding social media,” the plaintiffs’ attorneys wrote, concluding that “Talent and Wrestlers are misclassified as independent contractors when they are, in fact, employees.”
The parties involved in this case filed in Philadelphia County court are from a variety of states. Foote and Riccaboni are residents of Pennsylvania. The Tate twins are residents of Tennessee, and Khan is a resident of Florida. AEW is headquartered in Florida and registered as a Delaware company.
“There is no diversity jurisdiction,” the plaintiffs’ lead attorney Stephen P. New told us by email on Wednesday, explaining why the lawsuit is filed in Pennsylvania and not in federal court. “Riccaboni is a resident of Pennsylvania and so is Foote. Tony Khan’s defamatory remarks were made in Philly thus venue is appropriate there as well.”
We contacted AEW representatives for comment on this report. If we receive a response, we’ll update this article.
Brandon Thurston contributed to this report.
