A U.S. federal judge has narrowed the lawsuit against several high-profile figures, including Tom Brady, Stephen Curry, and Shohei Ohtani. They were accused of promoting the now-collapsed cryptocurrency exchange, FTX. The lawsuit claimed these celebrities helped deceive investors by promoting FTX, despite signs of fraud, and hiding payments they received for their endorsement.
In a ruling issued in Miami, U.S. District Judge K. Michael Moore dismissed most of the claims. He stated that the investors couldn’t prove the celebrities knew FTX was fraudulent. The judge pointed out that simply being paid for promotions doesn’t mean the celebrities were involved in illegal activity. However, he allowed some claims to move forward under Florida and Oklahoma state laws, suggesting the celebrities may have helped sell unregistered securities.
The lawsuit also includes other well-known figures, such as former baseball star David Ortiz, tennis player Naomi Osaka, supermodel Gisele Bündchen, and others. Legal representatives for the celebrities haven’t commented on the ruling yet.
Adam Moskowitz, an attorney for the investors, called the ruling a partial win. He pointed out that Florida law holds individuals accountable even if they didn’t know about the fraud. Moskowitz plans to revise the lawsuit and might add new defendants, like Major League Baseball and Formula 1 Racing. Some athletes, such as Shaquille O’Neal and Trevor Lawrence, have already settled their parts in the case.
FTX, once a major cryptocurrency exchange, filed for bankruptcy in November 2022. Its founder, Sam Bankman-Fried, was convicted of fraud and is appealing his conviction. In October 2024, FTX’s bankruptcy plan was approved to pay back its customers.
