UFC announced a revised financial settlement on Thursday, after a new lawsuit was filed by Cung Le et al. more than a decade earlier.
The revised figure is $375 million. This is an increase of 11% from the original $335 million settlement announced by the judge Richard Boulware on March 20th, which was later denied by him in late July.
In a release, UFC stated that they believe the new terms address Boulware’s concerns, which were primarily assumed to be the financial number being too low.
It stated that “while we believe the initial settlement was fair – a sentiment shared by Plaintiffs – we feel it is in all parties’ best interests to bring this litigation close.”
The settlement amount in the Le case is significantly lower than the $1.6 billion damages sought. Both sides want to close the case without a trial, where the plaintiffs’ lawyer and the plaintiffs themselves could lose everything if they lost. UFC (owned TKO) would risk losing much more due to treble damages which allows the court awarding a plaintiff three-times the amount originally sought.
A win by the plaintiffs in a court trial would require a unanimous verdict from the jury and a long appeals process, which would delay any payment.
The trial date is set for February 3, 2025. It’s up to the judge whether or not he accepts the settlement.
This potential settlement only applies to the Le case that was originally filed in 2014. The antitrust suit involved up to 1200 fighters who competed at least once in the UFC between December 16, 2010 and June 30, 2017. They didn’t opt out of it. They collectively sued UFC for lost wages, back pay and claiming that the UFC had signed them up to long-term contracts and then bought out all their competition, stifling market.
Another antitrust case, led by former fighter Kajan Johnston, is still in progress. The Le case is similar to the Johnson case, but it covers a different period of time after fighters signed waivers not to be part of a lawsuit. The Johnson case also seeks injunctive relief, in addition to damages, which would change the way future contracts can be written.
UFC released a statement stating that “the process is still in its very early stages and a motion for dismissal of the complaint remains pending.”
UFC announces revised financial agreement in Cung Le antitrust case in todays Wrestling news, Chatalong Chatbox, Results will be Hidden inside a spoiler Button so you will not bet spoiled about direct results.
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