More on WWE Fining Lars Sullivan for His Controversial Past Comments

As noted before, WWE fined Lars Sullivan $100,000 for a series of controversial comments he made on a bodybuilding forum from 2008 to 2013. The Wrestling Observer’s Dave Meltzer reported that WWE’s fine was real but likely would be paid in installments due to its size and his current earnings capabilities in the company.

Following WWE’s announcement, questions and debates arose online regarding the legality of WWE being able to fine their talent for making inappropriate comments prior to their employment in the company.

Meltzer recently reported that a clause discovered within Sullivan’s contract explicitly gives WWE the legal power to punish their talent for any incident they cause regardless of when it actually took place. The terms also provide the criteria needed for a punishment to be possible if it negatively affects WWE, their sponsors, or anyone else associated with the individual.

“Wrestler shall act at all times with due regard to public morals and conventions during the term of this agreement. If wrestler shall have committed or shall commit any act or do anything that is or shall be an offense or violation involving moral turpitude under federal, state or local laws, or which brings wrestler into public disrepute, contempt, scandal or ridicule, or which insults or offends the community or any employee, agent or affiliate of promoter or which injures wrestlers’ reputation in promoter’s sole judgment, or diminishes the value of wrestler’s professional wrestling services to the public or promoter, then at the time of any such act, or any time after promoter learns of any such act, promoter shall have the right to fine wrestler in an amount to be determined by promoter; and promoter shall have the right to immediately suspend wrestler and/or terminate this agreement pursuant to Section 12.”