On Friday, Vince McMahon resolved his SEC charges relating to undisclosed settlements. The SEC said McMahon agreed to pay a $400,000 civil penalty and reimburse the WWE $1.33 million after consenting to an order finding that he violated the Securities Exchange Act.
McMahon claimed, "The case is closed. Today ends nearly three years of investigation by different governmental agencies. There has been a great deal of speculation about what exactly the government was investigating and what the outcome would be. As today’s resolution shows, much of that speculation was misguided and misleading."
Janel Grant's team issued the following statement:
Statement from Ann Callis, Attorney for Janel Grant, on Confirmation from the SEC that Vince McMahon Violated the Law
SEC charges Vince McMahon after he failed to disclose two hush-money settlements to WWE, in an attempt to keep his abuse and harassment quiet
NEW YORK – Today, the SEC found that on two separate occasions Vince McMahon violated the law when he paid hush money settlements in an attempt to keep allegations of abuse against him quiet.
Ann Callis, attorney for Janel Grant, the former WWE employee and sexual assault and human trafficking survivor, released the following statement:“During his time leading WWE, Vince McMahon acted as if rules did not apply to him, and now we have confirmation that he repeatedly broke the law to cover up his horrifying behavior, including human trafficking. The SEC’s charges prove that the NDA Vince McMahon coerced Ms. Grant into signing violates the law, and therefore her case must be heard in court. While prosecutors for the Southern District of New York continue their criminal investigation, we look forward to bringing forward new evidence in our civil case about the sexual exploitation Ms. Grant endured at WWE by Vince McMahon and John Laurinaitis.”
Janel Grant, a former WWE employee, filed a lawsuit in January against Vince McMahon, WWE, and John Laurinaitis. The lawsuit accuses McMahon of sexual assault and sex trafficking. On May 30, Grant agreed to pause the lawsuit for six months while the federal investigation continued against McMahon, who resigned from TKO/WWE following the lawsuit being filed. The lawsuit is still active.
