Vince McMahon’s NDAs were drafted and signed without WWE’s knowledge – Report
There has been another development in the ever-evolving story regarding former WWE Chairman Vince McMahon, his sex trafficking lawsuit, and everything in between.
Last week, former WWE employee Janel Grant filed a lawsuit against McMahon, former Head of WWE Talent Relations John Laurinaitis, and the company itself on the grounds of sexual, physical and emotional abuse, as well as sex trafficking and rape.
The main reason why Grant took her story public was because she signed a nondisclosure agreement in 2022 that became void after McMahon failed to pay her the hush money he had promised. It’s these NDAs that are the topic of discussion today, as they have become a thorn in the side of WWE and McMahon’s defense.
Vince McMahon has handed out many NDAs over the years:
Janel Grant is seemingly one of many women who have suffered abuse at the hands of McMahon over the years given the amount of NDAs the former WWE Chairman has handed out. In 2022, it was reported that nearly $20 million was given to unnamed women by McMahon in return for their silence. This money caused WWE to revise an earnings report they had published around the same time, primarily because the company itself didn’t know about them.
That’s right. The NDAs that Vince McMahon drafted with several women over the years were made in secret, meaning that WWE didn’t know about them, which means that all of the NDAs that were signed aren’t enforceable. Experts close to the situation told VICE TV:
“An NDA cannot be used as a shield to prevent a victim from bringing criminal charges or speaking to investigators. If these women or others desire to speak out in public or bring civil suits, though, it’s not clear that an agreement like the one Grant signed would prevent that.”
(H/T F4WOnline)
John Laurinaitis has called himself “a victim”:
One of the people being sued is John Laurinaitis, the former Head of Talent Relations at WWE and a former right-hand man to McMahon. The allegations have caused Laurinaitis to reach out to a legal team to fight for his innocence. Laurinaitis’ lawyer, Edward Brennan released this statement on Thursday:
“Mr. Laurinaitis denies the allegations in the misguided complaint and will be vigorously defending these charges in Court, not the media. Like the Plaintiff, Mr. Laurinaitis is a victim in this case, not a predator. The truth will come out.”
(H/T F4WOnline)
Brennan stated that McMahon had control over both Grant and Laurinaitis during the timeframe of the lawsuit, and that he would fight to prove his client’s innocence.
Please credit the original sources when using quotes from this article and give a H/T to Vendetta Sports Media for the transcription.
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