Ring Boys Scandal Lawsuit Against WWE, TKO, Vince McMahon, & Linda McMahon Update – Lawsuit Allowed to Continue for Most Claims

As noted before, a lawsuit was filed in October of 2024 against WWE, WWE’s parent company TKO Group, former WWE Chairman Vince McMahon, and Linda McMahon on behalf of the survivors of the infamous WWE Ring Boys scandal in 1992. Additional survivors joined as plaintiffs for the lawsuit following the Maryland Supreme Court upholding the Maryland Child Victims Act as being constitutional this past February. More survivors joined as plaintiffs this past April and filed new additional allegations.

Post Wrestling and Wrestlenomics’ Brandon Thurston reported that Judge James K. Bredar issued a ruling on Thursday allowing the lawsuit to continue for seven of the eight plaintiffs.

Thurston reported that Bredar’s ruling also distinguished which former ring attendants have claims against which defendants.

John Doe 2 and 6’s claims will proceed with their case against Linda McMahon. All seven remaining plaintiffs will be allowed to proceed with their claims against former WWE and TKO Executive Chairman Vince McMahon and WWE.

Thurston reported that John Doe 7’s claims against all of the defendants were “dismissed without prejudice” meaning he would be legally allowed to refile his lawsuit in the future if he wanted.

In the ruling, Judge Bredar rejected the defendants arguments that the plantiffs’ allegations and lawsuits should be dismissed due to a lack of jurisdiction in Maryland.

Thurston wrote:

“On the surviving claims, Judge James K. Bredar rejected the defendants’ arguments that the plaintiffs’ allegations should be dismissed due to a lack of jurisdiction in Maryland, where the case is being litigated in federal court. That venue is critical to the ring boys’ claims’ legal viability because Maryland, unlike most states, recently removed any time limits within which claimants can bring civil lawsuits against those they say are responsible for sexual abuse they suffered when they were children. The Maryland Child Victims Act of 2023 was upheld in a Maryland Supreme Court ruling earlier this year, which was another hurdle passed allowing this case to continue.”

Bredar also ruled that the lawsuit by the seven remaining plaintiffs can now move to the discovery phase.

Following the ruling, law firm DiCello Levitt, who are representing the surviving ring boys, released an official statement.

WWE ‘Ring Boys’ Sexual Abuse Case Moves to Discovery
U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland Allows Majority of Survivors’ Claims to Proceed

NEW YORK – December 11, 2025 – The U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland has largely denied motions to dismiss filed by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), TKO Group Holdings, and Vince and Linda McMahon in the “Ring Boys” child sexual abuse case, allowing the majority of survivors’ claims to proceed to discovery. In a detailed memorandum, Judge James K. Bredar held that plaintiffs plausibly alleged WWE’s duty and knowledge, and that claims against the defendants may move forward.

DiCello Levitt—together with Murphy, Falcon & Murphy—represents the survivors in the case, Does 1–8 v. WWE, et al., which will now move to discovery.

“This ruling affirms that our clients’ allegations deserve to be heard in court and marks a significant step forward for these survivors,” said Greg Gutzler, a partner at DiCello Levitt who leads the litigation.

“Through discovery, we will obtain documents and testimony that shed further light on who knew about this terrible abuse and how it was allowed to persist. We look forward to uncovering the truth and pursuing accountability for survivors who have waited decades to tell their stories.”

“For too long, these survivors carried this burden alone,” added DiCello Levitt Partner Adam Prom. “We will fight vigorously to secure the justice they were denied for decades and pursue redress from those who failed to protect them.”

For years, WWE employees lured underaged boys—known as “Ring Boys”—to assist with WWE’s wrestling events. These boys, many from vulnerable backgrounds, were groomed, exploited, and sexually abused by WWE’s ringside announcer, Melvin Phillips Jr., and another WWE executive.

The abuse occurred not only at wrestling venues, but also in hotels used in connection with WWE’s events, often in plain sight of WWE executives and wrestlers. Despite widespread knowledge of Phillips’s predatory behavior, WWE leadership—including Vince and Linda McMahon—failed to properly intervene or prevent the abuse, which allowed it to continue.

As the case advances into discovery, the litigation is led by a seasoned team: DiCello Levitt’s Greg Gutzler with Adam Prom, Mark DiCello, Bobby DiCello, and Emma Bruder, alongside Murphy, Falcon & Murphy’s William H. “Billy” Murphy, Jr.