Ex-WWE executive agrees to help accuser in sex abuse lawsuit against Vince McMahon and WWE

Vince McMahon stands at Republican state convention in Hartford, Conn., May 18, 2012. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill, File)

A former WWE executive who had been fighting sexual abuse allegations in a lawsuit by an ex-employee has agreed to a confidential settlement and will now help the accuser as she continues suing the company and former leader Vince McMahon, representatives and lawyers said Wednesday.

John Laurinaitis, WWE’s former head of talent relations — who once wrestled under the name Johnny Ace — will aid Janel Grant in her lawsuit against McMahon and the worldwide wrestling entertainment conglomerate. Representatives for Grant and Laurinaitis lawyer Edward Brennan confirmed the settlement-cooperation deal and said Laurinaitis has “evidence” against McMahon and the company, but wouldn’t say what it was.

“His agreement to a confidential settlement is a pivotal next step toward holding McMahon and WWE accountable and bringing justice to Ms. Grant after years of sexual abuse and trafficking,” representatives for Grant and Laurinaitis said in a joint statement. “Mr. Laurinaitis looks forward to moving on with his life. We cannot provide any additional details at this time.”

A court document filed Wednesday says Grant and Laurinaitis agreed to a dismissal of the lawsuit’s claims against Laurinaitis, but allegations against the WWE and McMahon remain.

McMahon’s lawyer, Jessica Rosenberg, issued a statement in response.

“Today’s dismissal of John Laurinaitis as a defendant doesn’t alter the facts of this case in any way. Vince McMahon never mistreated Janel Grant,” Rosenberg said. “No matter how many press releases her team issues, the truth remains unchanged.”

Rosenberg added that a lawyer for Laurinaitis previously said the lawsuit’s allegations were unfounded.

Representatives for the WWE did not immediately return emails seeking comment Wednesday.

Grant sued the WWE, McMahon and Laurinaitis last year in federal court in Connecticut, where the WWE is based in Stamford. In graphic detail, she alleges McMahon coerced her into sex acts with him, Laurinaitis and others, and she claims both men sexually assaulted her. She says she was made to do humiliating acts during the encounters. The lawsuit also includes photos of sexual texts it says McMahon sent Grant.

McMahon, former CEO and chairman of WWE, has denied Grant’s allegations. He has previously said the lawsuit is “replete with lies, obscene made-up instances that never occurred, and is a vindictive distortion of the truth. I intend to vigorously defend myself against these baseless accusations, and look forward to clearing my name.” His lawyers said in court documents that he had a consensual relationship with Grant and never mistreated her.

Grant first started working for the WWE in 2019 as an entry-level employee in its legal department, a job arranged by McMahon, and later transferred to the talent relations department, where Laurinaitis was her boss.

Grant has said she was eventually pressured into leaving her job with the WWE and signing a $3 million nondisclosure agreement. The lawsuit also seeks to have the agreement declared invalid, saying McMahon breached the deal by giving her $1 million and failing to pay the rest.

Currently pending in the lawsuit are motions by McMahon, the WWE and Laurinaitis to move all the claims to arbitration. They said the lawsuit should not be allowed because Grant agreed to settle any disputes in arbitration as part of her nondisclosure agreement.

McMahon resigned from WWE’s parent company in January 2024 after Grant filed her lawsuit. At the time, McMahon stepped down from his position as executive chair of the board of directors at WWE’s parent company, TKO Group Holdings.

McMahon also resigned as WWE’s CEO in 2022 amid a company investigation into allegations that match those in Grant’s lawsuit.

McMahon bought what was then the World Wrestling Federation in 1982 and transformed it from a regional wrestling company into a worldwide phenomenon. Besides running the company with his wife, Linda, who is now the U.S. education secretary, he also performed at WWE events as himself.

Dave Collins, The Associated Press