John Laurinaitis Subpoenaed In WWE Shareholder Lawsuit (WWE News)

John Laurinaitis among latest names subpoenaed in WWE shareholder lawsuit.

by Andrew Pollard
John Laurinaitis
WWE.com

The ongoing WWE shareholder lawsuit has now seen additional subpoenas filed, including John Laurinaitis.

As first reported by Wrestlenomics, Laurinaitis was scheduled to be deposed via a Zoom call from his attorney's office last Friday, with it presumed that this deposition took place. The full details of these subpoenas are not currently publicly available.

Not to be confused with the ongoing Janel Grant lawsuit against Vince McMahon and WWE - from which Ms. Grant dismissed Laurinaitis in May after he agreed to provide evidence in her case - this shareholder lawsuit was filed in November 2023, alleging that McMahon set in motion the 2023 merger with Endeavor so that he could remain in power, in turn ignoring other possible buyers who potentially wouldn't have kept McMahon in charge, and meaning that shareholder value may not have been maximised.

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Brought by the WWE shareholders and led by the Ohio Laborers' Pension Fund, the defendants in this case include Vince McMahon, Nick Khan, Paul Levesque, and former board members Michelle Wilson and George Barrios. The plaintiffs allege that these defendants enabled McMahon's plan, which hindered any sort of fair sale process.

Additionally, Liberty Media and private equity firm KKR are also due to be deposed, with it believed that both companies were at one point potential bidders for WWE back in 2023. Personal assistants of McMahon - Paul Mangieri and Michael Mangieri - are two other names subpoenaed.

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Further depositions are expected in the next few weeks, with this case now at the discovery phase.

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Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks/Saints, Jamie Hayter, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.