Vince McMahon and WWE senior leaders have reached a last-minute settlement with shareholders to resolve a class action lawsuit that would have challenged the WWE and UFC merger. The settlement prevents the potential of documents pertaining to McMahon's sexual assault allegations and hush money scandals being made public.
The trial, which suggested that McMahon manipulated and steered WWE into a favorable deal with Endeavor in order to secure control of the company, was supposed to start on Monday. But it has now been cancelled after the parties reached an agreement in principle.
If the trial would have proceeded as planned, the discovery process would likely have seen the shareholders request that McMahon turn over all documents related to the sexual misconduct allegations along with payments made to his women accusers. The documents would have reflected McMahon's "state of mind" at the time of the merger.
Details regarding that settlement were not readily available.
The lawsuit from WWE shareholders was first filed following the merger in 2023, which saw McMahon return to power after his resignation in 2022 when the allegations of sexual misconduct initially surfaced. McMahon eventually resigned from the board in January 2024 after a former WWE employee, Janel Grant, alleged that McMahon had trafficked and abused her.
Even though the Delaware lawsuit is now settled, the lawsuit filed by Grant against McMahon is still ongoing.
Bloomberg Law was the first to report of the settlement being reached on Sunday.