McDevitt said he believes Kyros should be disbarred, but stopped short of saying he or WWE would bring a formal action.
Kyros shot back, “Given the magnitude of the health crisis in pro wrestlers, it is understandable that the WWE would want to launch a campaign of personal destruction against me and call for disbarring the advocate who is directly responsible for obtaining at least five CTE studies in some of the most famous wrestlers ever to perform for WWE including Jimmy Snuka, Balls Mahoney and Mr. Fuji. If I were disbarred, Mr. McDevitt would soon be out of work as he needs to work overtime to fight my clients’ just claims.”
McDevitt rebuffed that, saying, “He’s convinced a lot of these guys that he was the lawyer that secured a $1 billion settlement in the NFL case. … He had nothing to do with it and so they all bought onto the idea that he was this top-notch lawyer.” [See Rejoinder on this Odd Outburst]
Kyros, in the emailed response, said he represents “hundreds of former NFL players who performed from the 1950s-1990s. I was not threatened with disbarment in those representations.”
Or this Exchange:
Federal Judge Slams Attorney Representing Wrestlers in Concussion Case Against the WWE
Connecticut Law Tribune 9/20/2018, Highlights Include:
“Jerry McDevitt of Pittsburgh-based K&L Gates, told the Connecticut Law Tribune Tuesday he had been texting Vince McMahon, chief executive officer of the WWE, after the ruling was announced. “He was at Monday Night Raw. He was obviously happy about the results and felt vindicated.”
McDevitt said he believes Kyros should be disbarred.
“He engaged in misconduct and he is an embarrassment to the profession,” McDevitt said of opposing counsel. “He just does not get it. Lawsuits are not about making up facts. And that is what he has done repeatedly.”………
On McDevitt’s call for Kyros’ disbarment, Kyros responded, “If I was disbarred, Mr. McDevitt would have a lot less to do. As the leading advocate for professional wrestlers’ legal rights, his sentiments are no doubt the product of his frustration that WWE’s outrageous misconduct has been so publicly revealed through my fearless advocacy.”
Note: The WWE lawsuit has been subject to widespread media attention, much of it noting the apparent lack of civility amongst the Court and the attorneys. As attorneys we are advocates and mouthpieces for our clients whose role is to present the facts and legal arguments to the courts. The injured wrestlers claims have tragically been buried under this mountain of distraction. As I have said at every opportunity the case is about the wrestlers. It is really the WWE that benefits from this circus-like back and forth that has turned the legal struggle into more of a storyline than a measured deliberation about the WWE’s historical failures to maintain workplace safety and the long term health issues including drug and alcohol addiction and neurological diseases that impact the wrestlers in these cases.