In a 40-page judgment, United States District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant dismissed all lawsuits against WWE filed by Konstantine Kyros on behalf of former WWE wrestlers, alleging they are either suffering from symptoms of permanent degenerative neurological conditions resulting from traumatic brain injuries sustained during their employment, or are at increased risk of developing such conditions.
The judge tore into Kyros for “repeated failures to comply with the clear, and unambiguous provisions of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure” and “the Court’s repeated instructions and admonitions, which has resulted in a considerable waste of the Court’s and the Defendants’ time and resource.”
The lawsuit was filed in July 2016 with over 50 former WWE Superstars seeking money from WWE, some of who form part of the WWE Hall of Fame. It was added to an already-filed lawsuit titled Laurinaitis v. World Wrestling Entertainment Inc.
The judge wrote that the Court has has been “extremely forgiving” of Kyros and his co-counsels’ “highly questionable practices.” She noted that despite four chances to submit pleadings that comply with rules, Kyros has persisted in asserting pages and pages of frivolous claims and allegations for which he lacked any factual basis.
Kyros and his law office have also been slapped with the bill to pay WWE’s legal fees.
The full list of former Superstars suing includes Joe Laurinaitis (Road Warrior Animal), Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka (through his wife Carole Snuka), Mr. Wonderful Paul Orndorff, Salvador Guerrero III and IV (Chavo Guerrero Sr. and Jr.), Bryan Clark (Adam Bomb), Anthony Norris (Ahmed Johnson), James Harris (Kamala), Dave and Earl Hebner, Chris Pallies (King Kong Bundy), Ken Patera, Terry Brunk (Sabu), Barry Darrow (Demolition Smash / Repo Man), Bill Eadie (Demolition Ax), Jim Brunzell, Susan Green, Angelo Mosca, James Manley (Jim Powers), Mike Enos (Blake Beverly), Bruce Reed (Butch Reed), Carli Moore-Begnaud (Jazz), Sylvain Grenier, Omar Mijares (Omar Atlas), Don Leo Heaton (Don Leo Jonathan), Troy Martin (Shane Douglas), Marc Copani (Muhammad Hassan), Mark Canterbury (Henry O. Godwin), Victoria Otis (Princess Victoria), Judy Hardee (Judy Martin), Mark Jindrak, Brian Knighton (Axl Rotten), Marty Jannetty, Jon Heidenreich, Terry Szopinski (The Warlord), Sione Valhi (The Barbarian), Larry Oliver (Rip Oliver), Bobbi Billard, Timothy Smith (Timothy Well), Tracy Smothers, Mike Halac (Mantaur), Rick Jones (Black Bart), Ken Johnson (Slick), George Gray (One Man Gang / Akeem), Ferrin Jesse Barr (Jimmy Jack Funk), Lou Marconi, Rod Price, Don Driggers, Rodney Begnaud (Rodney Mack), Ronald Heard (Ron Bass), and Boris Zhukov.
You can read the full ruling which details the judge’s reasoning behind the dismissal of the lawsuits below.
[scribd id=2 key=key-VsUMKbUZeLfR0jGSzGbD mode=scroll]
