8. Wrestlers Waive WWE's Liability If They Were To Die In The Ring
More big bold scare letters here:
9.12 (b) WRESTLER ACKNOWLEDGES THAT THE PARTICIPATION AND ACTIVITIES REQUIRED BY WRESTLER IN CONNECTION WITH HIS PERFORMANCE IN A PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING EXHIBITION MAY BE DANGEROUS AND MAY INVOLVE THE RISK OF SERIOUS BODILY INJURY, INCLUDING DEATH. WRESTLER KNOWINGLY AND FREELY ASSUMES FULL RESPONSIBILITY FOR ALL SUCH INHERENT RISKS AS WELL AS THOSE DUE TO THE NEGLIGENCE OF PROMOTER OR OTHER WRESTLERS.(c) WRESTLER HEREBY RELEASES, WAIVES AND DISCHARGES PROMOTER FROM ALL LIABILITY TO WRESTLER AND COVENANTS NOT TO SUE PROMOTER FOR ANY AND ALL LOSS OR DAMAGE ON ACCOUNT OF INJURY TO THEIR PERSON OR PROPERTY OR RESULTING IN SERIOUS OR PERMANENT INJURY TO WRESTLER OR IN WRESTLERS DEATH, WHETHER CAUSED BY NEGLIGENCE OF PROMOTER OR OTHER WRESTLERS UNDER CONTRACT TO PROMOTER.
This became a topic of various news stories (like
this local story and
this national one) during Linda McMahon's first unsuccessful bid for one of Connecticut's seats in the United States Senate. WWE claimed to have never exercised the clause, with a Yale law professor responding that yes, they did, during the Owen Hart wrongful death lawsuit. WWE's argument was that it only came up once they got to the point of having to deal with the suit, since they had offered Martha Hart, Owen's widow and the executor of his estate, a sizable settlement before she ever filed a suit.