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professional golf legend jack nicklaus Won a $50 million judgment in a defamation suit filed in Florida Against his former business partners.
in a six-person jury palm beach county Nicklaus’ companies were found Monday to have damaged the reputation of the 18-time major champion and subjected him to ridicule, hatred, disbelief, disbelief or contempt. Nicklaus Company owner and executive chairman Howard Milstein and executive Andrew O’Brien were also named as individual defendants, but jurors did not find them personally liable.
Nicklaus’ attorney Eugene Stearns said Nicklaus has spent his life helping others and earning a reputation as not only a great athlete but a great human being.
Stearns said, “He deserved better than what he got, and we’re glad the jury addressed the special circumstances that were so distressing.”
According to the lawsuit, Nicklaus, 85, claimed Milstein, O’Brien and others at the company spread false stories that Nicklaus had considered a $750 million deal to join the Saudi Arabia-backed LIV golf league and that he was suffering from dementia and no longer mentally fit to manage his affairs.
Defense attorneys said at trial that Nicklaus company executives never tried to discredit Nicklaus and argued that the case was fundamentally a business dispute. He said Nicklaus’ reputation has not suffered any damage and there is no reason for a company that shares the golfer’s name to attack him.
Attorneys for the Nicklaus companies did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment Tuesday evening.
Earlier this year, a new york The judge dismissed a lawsuit filed against Nicklaus by the Nicklaus Companies, which attempted to prevent the golfer from using his name, image and likeness to promote his golf course design business.
Nicklaus joined Nicklaus Companies in 2007 as part of a $145 million deal, but Nicklaus eventually left the job and planned to continue designing golf courses on his own. While Nicklaus is once again free to design golf courses under his own name, Nicklaus Companies retains the right to sell clothing and equipment with the “Jack Nicklaus” logo.