Vince McMahon and Nick Khan have been sanctioned by the judge overseeing the WWE shareholder lawsuit related to the 2023 merger with UFC under TKO Group Holdings, per a 41-page opinion obtained by POST Wrestling.
Vice Chancellor J. Travis Laster of the Delaware Court of Chancery found that McMahon, Khan, Triple H, Stephanie McMahon, and Brad Blum used Signal’s auto-delete function to destroy messages they were legally required to preserve — even after WWE’s legal department had issued formal hold notices. The timing of the deletions, per the ruling, coincided with key events cited in the lawsuit, including federal prosecutors contacting WWE about McMahon’s alleged misconduct.
As a result, the court will treat five facts as presumptively true when the case goes to trial from June 8-12. Those five facts are: that Ari Emanuel’s promise of a continued role for McMahon influenced his decision-making around the merger; that Emanuel’s offer of indemnification related to federal investigations also influenced his decisions; that McMahon decided to pursue an Endeavor deal in 2022 before a formal strategic review began; that Khan communicated with Emanuel between August and December 2022 to facilitate the deal; and that McMahon and Khan worked with advisors to steer the process toward Endeavor and away from other potential bidders.
The burden now falls on the defendants to disprove those five facts using the higher “clear and convincing evidence” standard. If the plaintiffs win, WWE shareholders could be awarded millions of dollars. A written opinion from the judge is expected months after the trial concludes.
The shareholder lawsuit, filed in November 2023, alleges that McMahon preselected Endeavor for the merger because Emanuel assured McMahon’s future at the company following his 2022 retirement from WWE amid a sexual misconduct and hush money scandal. The plaintiffs allege this prevented a competitive process from developing with other interested buyers, including Liberty Media and private equity firm KKR, leaving shareholders shortchanged.
