WWE: Fan Suing WWE For Injury at WrestleMania

[BostonBob]

from 411mania.com:

WWE has been hit with a lawsuit from an injury suffered by a fan who was attending WrestleMania 38. Marvin Jackson filed a lawsuit against the company on January 12th in the District Court of Tarrant County, Texas. The lawsuit alleges that he lost hearing in his left year due to a pyro blast that was part of the show.

According to the lawsuit, Jackson was an “invitee” at the show and was next to the stage when pyrotechnics went off, which was “so loud that it caused Plaintiff to lose almost all hearing in his left ear.” Jackson argues that WWE “failed to notify anyone or place any warnings” regarding the potential dangers related to the pyro and accuses WWE of Negligence, Gross Negligence and Strict Liability. It further argues that the company was aware of the risk involved and that his injury was the result of the “objective, extreme risk that Defendant was subjectively aware of yet disregarded for cosmetic effect and pecuniary gain.”

The lawsuit is requesting a jury trial and and seeks more than $1 million including “damages of any kind, penalties, costs, expenses, prejudgment interest, and attorney’s fees.”

WWE filed a request on February 17th to have the lawsuit moved to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Fort Worth Division. That request has not yet been ruled on.

Click to read more...

 

[ManofSteel55]

This is going to be a hard lawsuit for this guy to win. I don't think WWE would have to do much to win, aside from prove that their pyro wasn't excessively loud.

 

[DaaaaB's]

This is going to be a hard lawsuit for this guy to win. I don't think WWE would have to do much to win, aside from prove that their pyro wasn't excessively loud.

Wouldn't it be tough to prove that when it caused him to lose the hearing in his ear?

Seems like a case that will settle out of court for 50k-100k.

 

[ManofSteel55]

Wouldn't it be tough to prove that when it caused him to lose the hearing in his ear?

Seems like a case that will settle out of court for 50k-100k.

It might be hard to prove it, given he is the only one who appears to have come forward with hearing damage. If his ear had an unknown pre-existing condition, it isn't WWE's fault that the pyro hurt his ear. He might have to prove that he had no ear damage at all, and that might be tough to do as I'm sure most people don't get hearing tests done often.

Seems like something WWE legal teams won't have an issue getting them out of.

 

[Emperoreddy]

It might be hard to prove it, given he is the only one who appears to have come forward with hearing damage. If his ear had an unknown pre-existing condition, it isn't WWE's fault that the pyro hurt his ear. He might have to prove that he had no ear damage at all, and that might be tough to do as I'm sure most people don't get hearing tests done often.

Seems like something WWE legal teams won't have an issue getting them out of.

It can be, but I imagine they just settle and move on. Wouldn't be shocked if this happens more often then we know.

 

[BostonBob]

An update from Wednesday's pwinsider.com:

As we previously reported, Marvin Jackson filed a lawsuit against WWE on 1/12 before the District Court of Tarrant County, Texas alleging that he lost hearing in his left ear while an "invitee" to Wrestlemania 38 due to a pyrotechnics blast that occurred as part of the WWE production. Jackson's lawsuit requested a jury trial and was seeking monetary relief of more than $1,000,000, including damages of any kind, penalties, costs, expenses, prejudgment interest, and attorney’s fees.

WWE filed a request on 2/17 to have the lawsuit moved to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Fort Worth Division. WWE has since filed a motion requesting that the matter be moved to arbitration. On 2/24, they argued to the court that before any purchase of Wrestlemania tickets could be made online, fans had to check several boxes, in effect agreeing to the terms and conditions of the ticket purchase at AT&T Stadium, which included agreeing to enter arbitration over any legal issues.

A ruling on that matter has not yet been made, but WWE is asking that the lawsuit be paused and not allowed to continue until the arbitration process has played out.

 

[GKJ]

Dude just wants a check

 

[Natey]

This is going to be a hard lawsuit for this guy to win. I don't think WWE would have to do much to win, aside from prove that their pyro wasn't excessively loud.

I went to Survivor Series, I believe, a few years back. And Kane's pyro nearly made me shit myself. I was right beside it.

 

[ManofSteel55]

I went to Survivor Series, I believe, a few years back. And Kane's pyro nearly made me shit myself. I was right beside it.

Kane's pyro was the bomb. I remember back in the early 00's I went to a Smackdown, and when that fire went off, everyone in the building felt it. We were first balcony and it felt like a stiff breeze on a hot summer day.

 

[Clint Eastwood]

That's gonna be a tall mountain to climb for that guy.

Although WM doesn't have the best history with safety. I remember WM 24 when a firework thing tipped over and started blasting fireworks in the crowd. The WM 33 stage catching fire was another oopsie.

 

[Petey But Really Jim]

That's gonna be a tall mountain to climb for that guy.

Although WM doesn't have the best history with safety. I remember WM 24 when a firework thing tipped over and started blasting fireworks in the crowd. The WM 33 stage catching fire was another oopsie.

 

[BostonBob]

Case was dismissed today. Vince is on a roll.

from pwinsider.com:

The lawsuit filed this past January in Texas over an alleged injury that took place at Wrestlemania 38 in Dallas was dismissed today by United States District Judge Mark T. Pittman, who sided with WWE's February request that the lawsuit should be moved from The United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Fort Worth Division to arbitration.

As we previously reported, Marvin Jackson filed a lawsuit against WWE on 1/12 before the District Court of Tarrant County, Texas alleging that he lost hearing in his left ear while an "invitee" to Wrestlemania 38 due to a pyrotechnics blast that occurred as part of the WWE production. Jackson's lawsuit requested a jury trial and was seeking monetary relief of more than $1,000,000, including damages of any kind, penalties, costs, expenses, prejudgment interest, and attorney’s fees.

The court has dismissed the lawsuit with prejudice, which means Jackson could not bring the lawsuit back to life before the same court. He will have to now enter arbitration in order to attempt to gain some sort of legal remedy.

On 2/24, WWE had argued to the court that before any purchase of Wrestlemania tickets could be made online, fans had to check several boxes, in effect agreeing to the terms and conditions of the ticket purchase at AT&T Stadium, which included agreeing to enter arbitration over any legal issues.

The court later ordered each side to file supplemental material arguing their sides on the potential arbitration by the end of the day yesterday so the court could consider the matter. WWE's brief noted that another court case involving a cruise line sided with the cruise line over a woman suing who claimed she had never entered into an agreement with them because her daughter had made the bookings and check her mother in, with WWE claiming that sets a legal precedent. Jackson's side argued that even if WWE meets the burden of proof that it should go to arbitration, Jackson "put forth sufficient evidence to create genuine disputes of material fact as to both: (1) his notice of the arbitration agreement; and (2) Jackson being considered a third party beneficiary", including that previous Supreme Court rulings favored his argument.

Jackson's attorneys had requested an oral hearing to argue their case before the court, but that was not allowed.

In his nine-page ruling, Pittman had decreed that Jackson was under the legal agreement for the Wrestlemania ticket purchase, even if his nephew had purchased it for him.

 

[Emperoreddy]

Kane's pyro was the bomb. I remember back in the early 00's I went to a Smackdown, and when that fire went off, everyone in the building felt it. We were first balcony and it felt like a stiff breeze on a hot summer day.

I went to a RAW in the late 90s and I remember it both being insanely loud and actually quite hot.

 

[93gilmour93]