Haynes v. World Wrestling Entm't, Inc.
| Decision Date | 09 September 2020 |
| Docket Number | 18-3325 (Con),18-3278 (L),18-3326 (Con),18-3322 (Con),18-3327 (Con),18-3330 (Con),18-3328 (Con) |
| Parties | Haynes, et al. v. World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. William Albert Haynes, III, Rodney Begnaud, AKA Rodney Mack, Russ McCullough, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated, AKA Big Russ McCullough, Ryan Sakoda, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated, Matthew Robert Wiese, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated, AKA Luther Reigns, Evan Singleton, Vito Lograsso, Cassandra Frazier, Individually and as next of kin to her deceased husband, Nelson Lee Frazier, Jr. a/k/a Mabel a/k/a Viscera a/k/a Big Daddy V a/k/a King Mabel and as personal representative of The Estate of Nelson Lee Frazier, Jr., Deceased, Shirley Fellows, on behalf of Estate of Timothy Alan Smith a/k/a Rex King, Joseph M. Laurinaitis, AKA Road Warrior Animal, Paul Orndorff, AKA Mr. Wonderful, Anthony Norris, AKA Ahmed Johnson, James Harris, AKA Kamala, Chris Pallies, AKA King Kong Bundy, Ken Patera, Barbara Marie Leydig, Terry Brunk, AKA Sabu, Barry Darsow, AKA Smash, Bill Eadie, AKA Ax, John Nord, Jonathan Hugger, AKA Johnny the Bull, James Brunzell, Susan Green, Angelo Mosca, AKA King Kong Mosca, James Manley, AKA Jim Powers, Michael Enos, AKA Mike, AKA Blake Beverly, Bruce Reed, AKA Butch, Sylain Grenier, Omar Mijares, AKA Omar Atlas, Don Leo Heaton, AKA Don Leo Jonathan, Troy Martin, AKA Shane Douglas, Marc Copani, AKA Muhammad Hassan, Mark Canterbury, AKA Henry Godwin, Victoria Otis, AKA Princess Victoria, Judy Hardee, Judy Martin, Bernard Knighton, as Personal Representative of Estate of Brian Knighton, a.k.a. Axl Rotten, Marty Jannetty, Terry Szopinski, AKA Warlord, Sione Havia Vailahi, AKA Barbarian, Timothy Smith, AKA Rex King, Tracy Smothers, AKA Freddie Joe Floyd, Michael R. Halac, AKA Mantaur, Rick Jones, AKA Black Bart, Ken Johnson, AKA Slick, George Gray, AKA One Man Gang, Ferrin Jesse Barr, AKA J.J. Funk, Rod Price, Donald Driggers, Ronald Scott Heard, on behalf of estate of Ronald Heard also known as Outlaw Ron Bass, Boris Zhukov, David Silva, John Jeter, AKA Johnny Jeter, Gayle Schecter, as Personal Representative of Estate Jon Rechner a.k.a. Balls Mahoney, Ashley Massaro, AKA Ashley, Charles Wicks, AKA Chad Wicks, Perry Satullo, AKA Perry Saturn, Charles Bernard Scaggs, AKA Flash Funk, Carole M. Snuka, on behalf of Estate of James W. Snuka, Consolidated Plaintiffs-Appellants, Kyros Law P.C., Konstantine W. Kyros, Appellants, Michelle James, as mother and next friend of M.O., a Minor Child and T.O, a Minor Child, Jimmy Snuka, "Superfly," by and through his guardian, Carole Snuka, Salvador Guerrero, IV, AKA Chavo Guerrero, Jr., Chavo Guerrero, Sr., AKA Chavo Classic, Bryan Emmett Clark, Jr., AKA Adam Bomb, Dave Hebner, Earl Hebner, Carlene B. Moore-Begnaud, AKA Jazz, Mark Jindrak, Jon Heidenreich, Larry Oliver, AKA Crippler, Bobbi Billard, Lou Marconi, Bernard Knighton, Kelli Fujiwara Sloan, on behalf of estate of Harry Masayoshi Fujiwara, Consolidated Plaintiffs, v. World Wrestling Entertainment, Incorporated, Consolidated Plaintiff-Defendant-Appellee, Vincent K. McMahon, Individually and as the Trustee of the Vincent K. McMahon Irrevocable Trust U/T/A dtd. June 24, 2004, as the Trustee of the Vincent K. McMahon 2008, and as Special Trustee of the Vincent K. McMahon 2013 Irrev. Trust U/A dtd. December 5, 2013 and as Trust, Consolidated Defendant-Appellees, Robert Windham, Thomas Billington, James Ware, Oreal Perras, John Doe's, Various, Consolidated-Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Second Circuit |
SUMMARY ORDER
RULINGS BY SUMMARY ORDER DO NOT HAVE PRECEDENTIAL EFFECT. CITATION TO A SUMMARY ORDER FILED ON OR AFTER JANUARY 1, 2007, IS PERMITTED AND IS GOVERNED BY FEDERAL RULE OF APPELLATE PROCEDURE 32.1 AND THIS COURT'S LOCAL RULE 32.1.1. WHEN CITING A SUMMARY ORDER IN A DOCUMENT FILED WITH THIS COURT, A PARTY MUST CITE EITHER THE FEDERAL APPENDIX OR AN ELECTRONIC DATABASE (WITH THE NOTATION "SUMMARY ORDER"). A PARTY CITING A SUMMARY ORDER MUST SERVE A COPY OF IT ON ANY PARTY NOT REPRESENTED BY COUNSEL.
At a stated term of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, held at the Thurgood Marshall United States Courthouse, 40 Foley Square, in the City of New York, on the 9th day of September, two thousand twenty.
Kyros Law P.C. and Pro Se Appellant Konstantine W. Kyros
Konstantine W. Kyros Anthony M. Norris KYROS LAW, P.C. Hingham, MA.
FOR CONSOLIDATED PLAINTIFFS-APPELLANTS:
William Albert Haynes, III, Russ McCullough, Ryan Sakoda, Matthew Robert Weise, Evan Singleton, Cassandra Frazier, Joseph M. Laurinaitis, Paul Orndorff, James Harris, Chris Pallies and Ken Patera, et al.
Erica C. Mirabella MIRABELLA LAW, LLC Boston, MA.
FOR CONSOLIDATED PLAINTIFFS-APPELLANTS:
Cassandra Frazier, Joseph M. Laurinaitis, Anthony Norris, James Harris, Chris Pallies and Ken Patera, et al.
R. Christopher Gilreath GILREATH & ASSOCIATES One Memphis Place Memphis, TN.
FOR CONSOLIDATED PLAINTIFFS-APPELLANTS:
Joseph M. Laurinaitis, Paul Orndorff, Anthony Norris, James Harris, Chris Pallies and Ken Patera, et al.
S. James Boumil BOUMIL LAW OFFICES Lowell, MA.
FOR CONSOLIDATED PLAINTIFFS-APPELLANTS:
Joseph M. Laurinaitis, Paul Orndorff, Anthony Norris, James Harris, Chris Pallies and Ken Patera, et al.
Brenden P. Leydon WOCL LEYDON, LLC Stamford, CT.
FOR DEFENDANTS-APPELLEES:
World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. Vincent K. McMahon
Jerry S. McDevitt Curtis B. Krasik K&L GATES LLP Pittsburgh, PA.
Jeffrey P. Mueller DAY PITNEY LLP Hartford, CT.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut (Bryant, J.).
UPON DUE CONSIDERATION, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED that the appeals of sanctions orders are DISMISSED, the merits appeals of the dismissal of all claims in Haynes v. World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., McCullough v. World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., Frazier v. World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., and Singleton v. World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. are DISMISSED, and the judgment of the district court on all other claims is AFFIRMED.1
This appeal arises from seven cases consolidated in the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut.2 The cases were brought against World WrestlingEntertainment Inc. by former WWE wrestlers. The plaintiffs-appellants allege that, as a result of physical trauma they experienced while performing, they suffered neurological damage resulting in diseases such as chronic traumatic encephalopathy ("CTE"), in addition to other significant physical and mental health impairments. In each of the cases, the plaintiffs-appellants were represented by the same attorney, Konstantine W. Kyros of Kyros Law P.C. We assume the parties' familiarity with the underlying pleadings and their factual allegations, the procedural and substantive rulings below, and the issues on appeal.
The first complaint in the consolidated cases was a putative class action filed in the District of Oregon in October 2014 on behalf of William Albert Haynes III, better known as Billy Jack. Haynes v. World Wrestling Entm't, Inc., No. 3:15-cv-1156 (VLB).3 Several months later, in January 2015, former wrestlers Vito LoGrasso and Evan Singleton filed a putative class action in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Singleton v. World Wrestling Entm't, Inc., No. 3:15-cv-425 (VLB). Both wrestlers had forum selection clauses in their contracts with WWE providing that litigation arising from the contract be brought in the District of Connecticut, where WWE is headquartered. The Pennsylvania court enforced the forum selection clauses and transferred the Singletonaction to the District of Connecticut. In February 2015, the estate of Nelson Lee Frazier Jr., a deceased wrestler, commenced a wrongful death action in the Western District of Tennessee. Frazier v. World Wrestling Entm't Inc., No. 3:15-cv-1305 (VLB). In April 2015, wrestlers Russ McCullough, Ryan Sakoda, and Matthew Wiese commenced another putative class action, this time in the Central District of California. McCullough v. World Wrestling Entm't Inc., No. 3:15-cv-1074 (VLB).
Around June 2015, the district court in Connecticut presiding over the Singleton action became aware of the pending actions in Oregon, Tennessee, and California. The contracts with WWE signed by the wrestlers in each case contained forum selection clauses requiring litigation in the District of Connecticut. All of the actions were eventually transferred to Connecticut where they were consolidated before the district court.
In March 2016, the district court dismissed all claims in the Haynes, Singleton, and McCullough actions for failure to state a claim, with the exception of fraudulent omission claims on behalf of Singleton and LoGrasso. McCullough v. World Wrestling Entm't, Inc., 172 F. Supp. 3d 528 (D. Conn.).
In November 2016, the district court granted WWE's motion to dismiss the wrongful death claim asserted in Frazier. Frazier, who died in 2014, had been cremated without having any of his brain tissue examined. Frazier's counsel had argued to the district court that CTE can be diagnosed only through a post-mortem examination of brain tissue. Because no examination had been done on Frazier, the court concluded that his estate could not plausibly allege that he had CTE. The court also concluded thatFrazier's estate failed to plead any non-conclusory allegations linking Frazier's death to injuries sustained while wrestling. Frazier had died of a heart attack, and the operative pleading contained no allegations that heart failure could result from CTE.
In a decision filed on March 28, 2018, the district court granted summary judgment on the remaining fraudulent omission claims in Singleton. The district court concluded that the plaintiffs had not produced evidence establishing that WWE knew of a risk of permanent degenerative neurological conditions prior to ...
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