On September 4, Kevin Kelly and The Boys, also known as The Tate Twins (Brandon Tate and Brent Tate), brought a lawsuit against AEW.
In the suit, the plaintiffs seek to void the arbitration clause of their talent contracts and request the court to certify a class-action suit against AEW over claims the company is misclassifying its wrestling talent as independent contractors rather than employees.
According to Brandon Thurston of Wrestlenomics, the judge has approved the sealing of their talent contracts (which are submitted as exhibits) and the redactions in their complaint that references their contracts.
The judge in the Kevin Kelly & Tate Twins lawsuit against AEW has approved the sealing of their talent contracts (which are submitted as exhibits) and the redactions in their complaint that references their contracts.
— Brandon Thurston (@BrandonThurston) September 27, 2024
It would have otherwise been the first time any AEW talent…
AEW gave the following statement on the lawsuit, "AEW does not comment on pending litigation."
Kevin Kelly joined AEW in June 2023 as the new play-by-play announcer for AEW Collision alongside Nigel McGuinness. Kelly's time at AEW was short-lived, as the company released him in March 2024. Before his time officially ended, Kelly made a series of social media posts that called out Ian Riccaboni for libel and trying to sabotage his career.
Attorney Stephen P. New said that Kelly had a three-year deal with AEW.
AEW released The Boys in April. Tony Khan claimed that The Boys no-showed multiple bookings and stood by these comments after The Boys denied Khan's claims.
Fightful will continue to update fans as the story unfolds.
