Sage Steele, who spent more than a decade and a half at ESPN, is suing the talent and sports agency that represented him.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, Steele was unhappy with the way his representatives spoke on his behalf during his dispute with ESPN.
He filed a lawsuit Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court, claiming that Creative Artist Agency (CAA) breached its fiduciary duty, according to the report.
Steele previously sued his former employer after he said ESPN suspended him in retaliation for comments he made related to Disney’s authority to vaccinate against COVID-19 during a podcast appearance. Disney is the parent company of ESPN.
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ESPN anchor Sage Steele talks on set during Game 4 of the NBA Finals between the Toronto Raptors and the Golden State Warriors on June 7, 2019, at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif. (Rey Josue II/NBAE via Getty Images)
“I respect everybody’s decision, I really do, but to approve it, you’re sick,” Steele said in September 2021 while a guest on NFL quarterback Jay Cutler’s “Uncut” podcast.
“And it scares me in many ways. But I have a job, a job that I love, and, frankly, a job that I need. But, also, I love it. I’m not surprised that it has come to this point. , especially with Disney, a global company … but it was really emotional.”
KEITH OLBERMANN SHOT AT SAGE STEELE AFTER ESPN ANCHORS’ 2021 BIDEN INTERVIEW.
Shortly after securing a deal with ESPN, Sage announced his departure from the company after 16 years.
Steele decided to leave what he described as his “dream job” in hopes that he could exercise his “First Amendment rights freely.”
TV host Sage Steele during a panel discussion at SXSW March 9, 2018, in Austin, Texas. (Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Cisco Systems, Inc.)
Matthew Kramer, CAA’s head of sports affairs, is reportedly at the center of Steele’s latest lawsuit. Steele said Kramer neglected to make it clear that he would not have to apologize for criticizing Disney’s vaccination policy. The lawsuit also claims that Steele was tricked into having a senior member of the CAA’s legal department review his contract as it relates to vaccination work.
According to the lawsuit, a copy of Steele’s contract was sent to a junior attorney for review.
Sage Steele speaks on stage during Players Tailgate by Bullseye Event Group Feb. 13, 2022, in Los Angeles. (Jesse Grant/Getty Images for the Bullseye Event team)
The complaint also suggested that CAA has a conflict of interest. The agency also represents ESPN personalities Adam Schefter and Adrian Wojnarowski. Schefter, the top NFL Insider, and Wojnarowski, the top NBA Insider, both received contract extensions through 2022.
The lawsuit also names several other ESPN employees, including executives representing the agency.
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Fox News Digital contacted CAA for comment and received a response from the agency’s outside legal counsel, Patrick J. Somers of Kendall, Brill & Kelly LLP.
“Ms. Steele’s allegations are a futile attempt to avoid paying significant commissions owed to CAA, which is the subject of a lawsuit CAA previously filed with, and presented to, the California Labor Commission which is in the final stages of determination,” Sommers said in a statement.
“Like her agency, CAA has worked tirelessly for Ms. Steele since 2013, when her career as a sports broadcaster took off. CAA agents made it clear that they wanted to help her resolve the controversy she created; but, now, she is denying the significant support of agency, skill, and judgment despite expressing his gratitude repeatedly in many written interviews during that period.”
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