Update On Sex Trafficking Lawsuit Against Vince McMahon And WWE

Vince McMahon
Vince McMahon | WWE

The Wall Street Journal reported in January 2024 that Janel Grant, a former WWE employee, had filed a lawsuit against WWE, Vince McMahon, and John Laurinaitis in a Connecticut federal court. McMahon was accused of sex trafficking in the complaint.

In an update to the lawsuit, McMahon has filed a motion to compel arbitration. According to Brandon Thurston of Wrestlenomics.com, “McMahonโ€™s defense is that the NDA he and Janel Grant agreed to contains an arbitration clause and therefore this dispute should go to private arbitration.”

Thurston also wrote the following:

โ€œIn the motion, McMahon denies that Grant was grieving from the loss of her parents at the time McMahon and Grant met in 2019. McMahon says Grantโ€™s father passed in 2017 and her mother passed away sometime earlier. McMahon references a lawsuit related to the foreclosure of Grantsโ€™ parentsโ€™ home filed with the New York State Supreme Court.โ€

Here is an excerpt from the document:

Defendant Vincent K. McMahon respectfully submits this memorandum of law in support of his motion to compel arbitration of Plaintiff Janel Grantโ€™s Complaint filed on January 25, 2024, pursuant to the Federal Arbitration Act (โ€œFAAโ€), 9 U.S.C. ยง$ 3 and 4.

PRELIMINARY STATEMENT

By publicly filing her salacious, false and defamatory Complaint, Plaintiff has brazenly
and intentionally violated a binding contract to arbitrate. The Complaintโ€™s outrageous claims of sexual abuse and coercion are pure fiction plainly intended to garner publicity and are flatly contradicted by Plaintiffโ€™s own contemporaneous statements. Contrary to Plaintiffs false allegations, Plaintiff and Defendant (collectively, the โ€œPartiesโ€) engaged in a consensual relationship during which Defendant never coerced Plaintiff into doing anything and never mistreated her in any way. In fact, in a love letter Plaintiff wrote to Defendant shortly before the Parties ended their relationship, Plaintiff described Defendant as โ€œ[m]y best friend, my love and my everything,โ€ praising him for being the โ€œwonderful, tender, vulnerable, heart-on-your-sleeve soul you really are.โ€ It is incredulous that Plaintiff, a then 42-year-old woman who claims on her resume to have a law degree from Pace University, would have written these words to Defendant months after all the events in the Complaint of alleged abuse, coercion, and โ€œsex-traffickingโ€ took place.

A response to McMahonโ€™s court filing from Grantโ€™s attorney Ann Callis was passed alongโ€ฆ

ON THE RECORD FROM ANN CALLIS, ATTORNEY FOR JANEL GRANT
โ€œVince McMahon has never known a storyline that he doesnโ€™t twist to fit his own shameful narrative. Her father was in in-home hospice during his final days where Janel continued to care for him around the clock. Prior to his death, she had been caring for her blind, wheelchair-bound mother. Using the grief of someone who lost both of her parents is an all new level of disgusting.โ€ โ€” Ann Callis, Attorney for Janel Grant

RE: Brian
โ€œShe was not dating at the time. Her ex-boyfriend allowed her to stay in the apartment as she rebuilt her life and resume post-taking care of her parents. She had no job and no other financial support to lean back on.โ€ โ€” Ann Callis, Attorney for Janel Grant

Please also see our previous statement about the letters:

STATEMENT FROM ANN CALLIS, ATTORNEY FOR JANEL GRANT
โ€œFrankly itโ€™s pretty disgusting that Vinceโ€™s weeks-late attempt to defend his horrendous behavior โ€“ behavior he claims to this day never happened โ€“ is to try to showcase letters that Vince himself coerced her to write.

His psychological torture of her continuesโ€“as is typical of abusive predators who respond to women speaking out with increased threats. While Janel isnโ€™t a stranger to his intimidation tactics, this is a new low even for him.โ€ -Ann Callis, Attorney for Janel Grant