Eric Bischoff Breaks Down Andrade's Legal Situation With WWE & AEW, Offers Advice

WWE Hall of Famer Eric Bischoff has waded into the Andrade AEW contract situation, and discussed whether it would be wise for AEW to take WWE to court. 

Following his return to AEW on October 1, Andrade disappeared from television, with reports later indicating that he has a one-year non-compete clause. Bischoff, on "83 Weeks," explained how non-competes work differently in different states. 

"Every judge and every jurisdiction is going to be different," Bischoff said. "Obviously in WWE's case, they're probably using Connecticut as, you know, the state in which these things need to be fought out or Florida, wherever it is. California, for example — good luck enforcing a non-compete in California. Florida, good luck. Alabama, try enforcing that you know, in certain states. You'll get laughed out. A judge won't even talk to you."

He believes that the non-compete can be challenged and Andrade and AEW could win the case. However, he added that most aren't keen to fight it, and his own attorneys have in the past dissuaded him from fighting such cases.

"It really comes down to: do you have the money and the time to challenge it? If you do, you'll probably win. You'll burn a bridge in the process and you'll blow probably 150 to 250 grand in the process, depending on who you are and how hard you have to fight, but you'll probably win. Most people aren't willing to fight it. They'll just ride it out, but it'll get challenged eventually. And I've had attorneys where I wanted to challenge it and I wanted to fight, attorneys that were working for me, just tell me it's not worth it."

Despite his non-compete clause, Andrade is advertised for an upcoming indie show on November 1.

Eric Bischoff, further on the podcast, pondered why AEW didn't do their due diligence with respect to Andrade's WWE contract. 

"I can understand how the talent might have gotten confused. But yeah, let's assume that he was just confused or didn't realize it for some reason. You still have the AEW side. I mean, they've got a responsibility to vet this knowing that he was previously under contract and knowing that previously WWE was very strict about their non-competes," said Bischoff.

Bischoff believes that AEW's Tony Khan could fight it in court, but wonders if it would be wise to fight such a case for a wrestler like Andrade. He warned that Khan wouldn't want to take part in depositions or discovery.

"I mean, Tony if he wanted to spend the money, he could certainly spend the money and be competitive with WWE in the process when it comes to legal fees, but he's going to have to sit through depositions and discovery," Bischoff added. "Even if you can afford it, it's a time suck. It's gonna take up so much of your time and focus. I just don't think Tony wants it. I just can't imagine it would be worth it to him. I mean this no offense to Andrade, I don't mean this to sound like it's going to sound because I can't help it, but this is not a guy that you're going to spend half a million dollars in legal fees fighting for."

The former WCW President thinks that Khan taking WWE to court and winning could change how the pro wrestling business operates.