Tfue's First Lawsuit Against FaZe Clan Dismissed
The last few years have been pretty wild for streamer and pro gamer Tfue. Turner "Tfue" Tenney has been involved in quite a few feuds, particularly with Ninja. However, his biggest battle has been a legal one against his former partners in the esports world, FaZe Clan. However, the organization seems to have recently landed its first major victory in the legal battle of Tfue vs. FaZe Clan.
Last year, the competitive gaming world was rocked when Tfue sued FaZe Clan, citing the organization's "oppressive" contract as the main factor. Quite simply, Tfue alleged that he was not being properly paid for his work. He also took FaZe Clan to task for promoting an unhealthy culture around itself.
When Tfue sued, however, FaZe Clan fired back at the gamer. According to FaZe Clan, Tfue wasn't supposed to have revealed a lot of the information contained in his original lawsuit. In addition to leaking some of the org's trade secrets, FaZe Clan also accused Tfue of attempting to poach some of its roster in an effort to start his own competing esports organization. All the while, Tfue very awkwardly remained a member of FaZe Clan, at least from a legal standpoint.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, one of the biggest issues in the early stages of this legal battle between the two is where the trail is supposed to even take place. Tfue has maintained that the trial should be held in California, especially since Tfue has sued FaZe Clan for allegedly being in violation of California's Talent Agencies Act. Meanwhile, FaZe Clan has insisted that Tfue's original contract stipulates that any legal proceedings would have to take place in New York. Tfue's argument in this case is that his original contract should be seen as null and void because of violations on FaZe Clan's part.
However, it looks as though the court has decided to throw out Tfue's original lawsuit. Instead of trying the case in California — the state where the Talent Agencies Act applies — things will instead proceed in New York, the state where FaZe Clan filed its countersuit against Tfue. In other words, things aren't looking great for Tfue in this case.
FaZe Clan's chief legal officer, Philip Gordon, released a statement commenting on the dismissal. Gordon said, "We are very pleased with Judge Cowan's decision to dismiss Turner's case. This is one of many moments throughout this legal process when the courts have ruled in our favor. We haven't wanted to argue this in the press because we don't want to attack Turner. We care about him and our gamers who have been hurt by this process."
It's unclear who is included in this comment about people who have "been hurt" by Tfue's lawsuit and the ensuing legal process. Presumably, it at least includes H1ghsky1, one of the youngest esports players in history. H1ghsky1 is a member of FaZe that was revealed to have been signed to the org while underage. This was revealed in Tfue's original lawsuit and has had a bit of an impact on the young gamer's career. His Twitch account was banned and he has taken to streaming on YouTube with his mother present. H1ghsky1 also notably released a diss track aimed at Tfue, so it would seem that there's a bit of a grudge being held in that regard.
It's worth mentioning that Tfue isn't the only member of FaZe Clan to publicly mention his displeasure with the organization. In fact, FaZe Clan has seen plenty of drama within the last few years. In addition to Tfue's gripes, Dennis "Cloakzy" Lepore has expressed his problems with FaZe Clan since he signed with the group three years ago. According to Cloakzy, he has attempted on numerous occasions to discuss his issues with FaZe Clan, but has been unable to get the group to return any of his messages or phone calls on the matter. However, Cloakzy has decided to simply wait things out, rather than attempt to take FaZe Clan to court. The gamer only has one more year in his contract before he's a free agent again.
Gordon's statement continued, "The reality is we support Turner and invested heavily in his career — we simply want an outcome that is fair. We look forward to continuing the N.Y. case and feel confident in its outcome."
It will be interesting to see how this plays out in court. As Gordon has said, it does seem like things are leaning more in FaZe Clan's favor at the moment, but who knows what can change between now and the end of the trial?