AEW, Tony Khan, and Ian Riccaboni have responded to the lawsuit filed by Kevin Kelly and the Tate Twins, aiming to enforce arbitration clauses.
Kelly and the Tate Twins (also known as The Boys) filed a lawsuit against AEW, Khan, and Riccaboni on September 6, seeking to invalidate the trios’ arbitration clauses in their contracts and establish a class-action lawsuit.
Kelly and the Tate Twins have claimed that AEW wrongly classifies its talent as independent contractors rather than employees. Kelly has also accused Riccaboni and AEW of defamation regarding Riccaboni’s comments about Kelly’s support of Sound of Freedom, while the Tates claim that Khan defamed them by alleging that they missed events.
POST Wrestling is reporting that the defendants have submitted a 40-page motion in the lawsuit, asking for the claims to be dismissed due to improper venue and to uphold the arbitration clause in their AEW contracts.
The motion argues that the case should be heard in Florida, where AEW is based and where the contracts were executed. The lawsuit was filed on August 30 in the Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, Court of Common Pleas.
The response further argues that the plaintiffs agreed to settle all disputes in Duval County, Florida, as per their contracts, which stipulate that disputes will be resolved privately through arbitration.
The response also points out that moving the case to Florida would benefit Riccaboni, as defending himself in Pennsylvania could potentially result in higher costs.
