Wrestlenomics provided updated information on the ongoing lawsuit between WWE and the Texas Attorney General continues with a hearing on May 29th. The Texas AG has yet to respond to WWE’s lawsuit and WWE has move for a default judgment.
Brandon Thurston of Wrestlenomics made a request for public information related to the Disbursement Request related to WWE’s Royal Rumble last year. Among the things that would be learned in that information would be how much the state would have paid to the WWE for holding its event in San Antonio. Thurston has requested additional information related to the 2023 Royal Rumble including a document entitled “Events Trust Fund Development & Tourism.” The WWE sued arguing that the agreement is a trade secret and contains proprietary information that fits an exemption in Texas’s public information law. As explained by Wrestlenomics, city officials were granted an exemption from the state Attorney General’s office allowing the state to withhold the bidding contract.
But the exemption was revised this past January. Assistant Attorney General Michelle Garza indicated that WWE did not provide factual evidence demonstrating the information at issue is confidential under Texas public information law. An interesting turn by the AG considering all it had to do was rubber stamp the exemption.
This past February, Holland & Knight, the law firm retained by WWE wrote Thurston and another unrelated entity regarding their right to intervene in the lawsuit.
Since properly serving the Texas AG, the entity has failed to respond within the specific timeframe per the state rules and WWE swiftly filed for a Motion for Default Judgment. A hearing has been set for May 29th which may include an entry of default judgment which may end the case in favor of WWE. In the alternative, the state of Texas may respond to the lawsuit prior to the hearing which would make the hearing moot.
In the alternative, Wrestlenomics could intervene in the lawsuit and make an appearance if they chose to do so. But that does not seem to be the case.
The Governor’s Office has issued a letter to the Opens Records Division of the Attorney General arguing that the documents remain out of public view. There are two main arguments.
Deliberative Process/”Chilling effect”
In a May 9, 2024 letter obtained by Wrestlenomics, the Governor’s Office argued that the requested information reflects “internation communications between OOG employees and officials communicating in their official policy-making capacities. In the marked information, the individuals were providing advice, opinions, and recommendations about matters of broad scope, and the release of these deliberations would have a chilling effect on the frank and open discussion necessary for the decision-making process.”
Common Law Privacy
The information marked in Exhibit B “consists of information that is intimate and embarrassing and not of legitimate concern to the public, including financial decisions that do not relate to transactions between an individual and a government body.”
Brandon succinctly explains why pressing for disclosure matters.
Payout Perspective:
Great job by Thurston and Wrestlenomics to push the envelope here. The arguments set forth by the Governor’s Office do not provide clarity on why the documents cannot be redacted. Obviously, the redactions would raise more questions as to why information remains confidential and under an exemption. Sometimes people forget that individual taxes fund some of the building projects and transparency should be provided when it comes to providing certain amenities to private parties such as WWE.
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