AEW has secured a partial legal victory this week, as a judge has ruled that the ongoing lawsuit filed by former AEW talent Kevin Kelly and the Tate Twins (formerly known as The Boys) must proceed through arbitration.
As first reported by POST Wrestling, Judge Harvey E. Schlesinger of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida granted AEW’s motion to compel arbitration, citing the contracts signed by Kelly, Brendan Tate, and Brandon Tate, which contained arbitration clauses.
While AEW had also requested the court dismiss the lawsuit outright, that request was denied. Instead, the case has been “administratively closed,” effectively putting it on pause while arbitration plays out. The court has ordered that both parties submit status updates every 90 days, though the content of those updates may remain sealed from the public.
The lawsuit, filed in late August 2024 through attorney Stephen P. New, includes a defamation claim from Kelly against AEW and announcer Ian Riccaboni. Kelly alleges Riccaboni defamed him in a Discord conversation, referencing his on-air mention of a film reportedly tied to QAnon conspiracy theories.
The Tate Twins were released by AEW in April 2024. At the time, company president Tony Khan cited their failure to appear at scheduled events as the reason for termination. However, the Tates have disputed that account, attributing their absence to travel-related miscommunication stemming from flying out of an unfamiliar airport. Their defamation claim focuses on Khan’s public comments regarding the alleged no-show.
Kelly, who was let go by AEW in March 2024, is seeking financial compensation, alleging breach of contract. Additionally, both Kelly and the Tates had asked the court to invalidate the arbitration clause in their contracts and to certify a class action suit alleging that AEW misclassified its performers as independent contractors rather than employees.
Initially filed in federal court in Pennsylvania, the case was transferred to Florida at AEW’s request.
