Michael Elgin Files Lawsuit Against Impact Wrestling
Michael Elgin is taking Impact Wrestling to court.
The former Impact star filed a lawsuit against Impact on February 8 in the Circuit Court of Davidson County, Tennessee.
Michael Elgin, real name Aaron Frobel, is seeking "not less than" $5 million in compensatory damages, accusing Impact Wrestling of a material breach of contract. He released a video on March 2 on YouTube explaining his side of the story.
The lawsuit stems from Michael Elgin's disappearance from Impact Wrestling in June of 2020 following the revelation of several sexual assault allegations against Elgin during the Speaking Out movement. Initially suspended by Impact, Elgin was ultimately never used by Impact Wrestling again, with the promotion later stating he was removed from all programming.
The basis for Michael Elgin's claim goes back to a conversation he had with Impact Executive Vice President Scott D'Amore in June of 2020, shortly after Impact announced the termination of wrestlers Dave Crist and Joey Ryan (who were also accused during Speaking Out) and the suspension of Elgin pending an investigation into the allegations against him.
In the lawsuit, Elgin alleges that D'Amore told him days later that there would be no investigation into the allegations.
Michael Elgin further claims D'Amore reiterated this stance in a December 2020 email, which has been entered into the lawsuit as an exhibit, that stated: "the company's decision not to utilize you in further programming was not based on any investigation beyond the public disclosures (and your responses thereto) at the time."
Elgin also alleges that Impact canceled a scheduled December 2020 appearance with Japanese promotion Pro Wrestling NOAH, and claims Impact damaged his reputation in Japan by doing so.
Michael Elgin had recently been in the news after he announced he would be a free agent in April, contradicting the long thought idea he had been let go from Impact at the onset of the Speaking Out movement. He made the news in July of 2021 after he was arrested for violating a protection order filed by his ex-fiancee.
This is not the first time claims have been made against Impact Wrestling regarding internal investigations. Former Impact referee Kris Levin called into question the legitimacy of an Impact investigation shortly after the beginning of the Speaking Out movement in 2020.