WWE has had its fair share of conflicts with wrestlers. Over the years, many wrestlers have run down WWE and talked about their displeasure working for the company. Some even took things to the next level and sued the wrestling juggernaut.
A few lawsuits even ran for years before a verdict could come. It's no secret that Vince McMahon and WWE have won some of the biggest lawsuits in the history of wrestling, most notably against the United States government over the distribution of steroids to wrestlers. Most of the time when wrestlers took matters to the court, WWE made a settlement. But in some cases, the wrestling giant didn't back down and ended up losing their legal battle.
10 Lost: The Ultimate Warrior's Lawsuit
The Ultimate Warrior was one of the WWE stars fans knew was destined to become a huge star in wrestling. Unfortunately for him, things took a bad turn with Vince McMahon just like they did for many other superstars.
In 1993, The Ultimate Warrior changed his legal name to Warrior. When he returned to WWE three years later, after a semi-retirement, the company claimed to own his name and gimmick. Warrior took matters to the court and the judge ruled in his favor, as revealed by him during an interview. But this wasn't enough as the two sides engaged in many more lawsuits. Things took a nasty turn when WWE released The Self Destruction of the Ultimate Warrior in 2005. Warrior sued them once again but this time, his case was dismissed.
9 Settled: Josue Romero's Lawsuit
A visually impaired and legally blind person named Josue Romero sued WWE in 2020 for violating the Americans with Disabilities Act. Romero claimed that WWE didn't grant him equal access to their WWE Shop website.
The suit was filed in October and WWE made a settlement two months later. The details of the settlements were undisclosed to the public.
8 Lost: WWF's Lawsuit
In 1994, WWE's then-parent company, Titan Sports, reached an agreement with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). Both parties were using the acronym "WWF" since 1979.
Under the agreement, WWE was granted the use of "WWF" as long as it was not overdone on commentary, it was not to be used outside of North America and the company refrained from using it in any written form. However, in 2000, the non-profit organization WWF sued Vince McMahon's promotion and a decision was made in favor of them. WWF was then rebranded as WWE.
7 Settled: Warren City Police And Fire Retirement System's Class Action Lawsuit
Last year, the Warren Police and Fire Retirement System filed a class-action lawsuit against WWE. The company was accused of selling almost $300 million worth of shares at "fraud inflated prices." WWE also allegedly kept secrets regarding troubles in negotiations with the Saudi Arabia government.
Some wrestlers even testified against WWE after the Saudi Arabia government held them as hostages when the company abruptly cut their live feed of Crown Jewel pay-per-view. Months later, WWE settled the lawsuit for $39 million.
6 Lost: Alberto Del Rio's Lawsuit
Alberto Del Rio once slapped an employee from the WWE's social media team, who allegedly made a racist joke about Mexicans. When Del Rio confronted the social media manager, he didn't apologize and then the Mexican star slapped him.
After Alberto was released, his WWE contract prevented him from working for another promotion for 90 days. The wrestler took the matters into court and a judge agreed with Rio. He then joined AAA in Mexico. Over the years, Rio has made several negative remarks about WWE and it seems like both sides are still not on the best terms.
5 Settled: Lawsuit With WCW
WWE and WCW went head-to-head every week on television during the Monday Night Wars. Behind the scenes, both companies also challenged one another from time to time, often over little issues.
When Kevin Nash and Scott Hall left WWE and showed up on the rival promotion, they said that Vince McMahon sent them to destroy WCW. This led to another lawsuit from WWE, which was settled years later in 2000 under the condition that if WCW ever went up for sale, WWE would have the first chance to place a bid.
4 Lost: Jesse Ventura's Lawsuit
Former Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura sued Titan Sports in 1991. Ventura learned that WWE lied to him about non-feature performers receiving royalties from the company.
The former color commentator won the case against WWE and received over $800,000 in addition to back pay of $8,625 for the exploitation of Ventura's name in merchandise.
3 Settled: Brock Lesnar's Lawsuit
WWE made a huge investment in Brock Lesnar from the get-go. When Lesnar was just a rookie, Vince McMahon regarded him as a future main-eventer and did everything Brock wanted, from a million-dollar contract to easy squash wins.
But in 2004, The Beast Incarnate made his mind about leaving WWE for NFL. Vince allowed him to leave under one condition, that is, Lesnar couldn't work for another pro-wrestling company until his WWE contract ended (in 2010). After The Beast failed in NFL, he sued WWE to get out of his contract and the company counter-sued when he worked for NJPW. Both sides made a settlement in 2006.
2 Lost: Charles Austin's Lawsuit
The Rockers, a team that consisted of Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty, once defeated jobbers Lanny Poffo and Charles Austin in December 1990. But a Rocker Dropper from Jannetty left Austin partially paralyzed for the rest of his life.
When Charles press charged WWE, Vince McMahon and Co. lost the case and they were forced to pay $26.7 million for the physical damages done to Austin.
1 Settled: Martha Hart's Wrongful Death Lawsuit
In 1999, Martha Hart filed a wrongful death lawsuit against WWE for her husband Owen Hart's death. The matter was resolved a year later in November 2000 for $18 million.
Martha used a large portion of this money and established a foundation in Owen's name. Years later, in 2010, she tried to sue WWE again for copyright infringement. This case was also settled outside the court, but the terms of the settlement were not announced.