Shaquille O’Neal faces legal issues with FTX and Astral’s NFT endorsements
Shaquille O’Neal faces legal issues with FTX and Astral’s NFT endorsements
Former NBA star received lawsuit alleging illegal marketing and securities offering
Shaquille O’Neal, the acclaimed former basketball star, has once again found himself in legal trouble as he faces attempts to serve him with legal documents related to a class action lawsuit related to his alleged promotion of FTX. Additionally, a new allegation has surfaced, alleging that he supported and established a nonfungible token (NFT) initiative on Solana called “Astrals,” which some consider an illegal “securities” offering.
According to The Wall Street Journal, legal servers were finally able to locate and serve O’Neal during a basketball game at the former FTX Arena, now known as the Kaseya Center, where he served as a commentator on May 23.
Adam Moskowitz, O’Neal’s legal representative, confirmed that O’Neal was presented with the papers for the FTX class action and a separate class action regarding his alleged promotional activities surrounding the NFT venture, “Astrals.”
In court, the four-time NBA champion defended himself, claiming that the papers for the FTX lawsuit were carelessly thrown in front of his moving car, which he later ignored. His legal team argued that this method of service was insufficient. Under federal regulations, a lawsuit is considered effectively served only if it complies with state law rules for serving a summons. O’Neal’s legal team argued that the previous lawsuit was based in Georgia and was not conducted by a legitimate person.
In this recent incident, Moskowitz stated that the legal server purchased tickets to the May 23 basketball game that O’Neal was broadcasting and managed to hand over the complaint while O’Neal was occupied. Moskowitz further alleged that O’Neal later expelled the server from the premises.
The FTX class action lawsuit alleges that athletes and other celebrities, including O’Neal, supported the now-insolvent exchange. Other people named in the lawsuit include fellow Golden State Warriors NBA Champion Steph Curry and retired New England Patriots NFL Quarterback Tom Brady.
The plaintiffs argue that the NFTs were considered an “investment contract” under the Howey test and that buyers were part of a “joint enterprise” that expected a return on investment. O’Neal is the only defendant named in the complaint. The lawsuit also questions O’Neal’s ongoing involvement in the Astrals project, claiming that he has not interacted on the Discord server since the beginning of this year.
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