WWE attorney Jerry McDevitt ‘working towards retirement,’ no longer on MLW lawsuit
For decades, the name Jerry McDevitt was synonymous with lawsuits and legal issues regarding WWE and Vince McMahon.
Soon, that will not be the case as the longtime WWE defense attorney told Wrestlenomics Wednesday that he is “working towards retirement.”
The impetus for his comment to the media outlet was in response to the latest development in the ongoing MLW/WWE lawsuit which recently saw a U.S. District judge deny WWE’s latest effort to dismiss the case. PWInsider had reported earlier this week that WWE asked for an extension due to seeking new legal counsel for the case.
When asked about the development, McDevitt told Wrestlenomics that he had been working toward retirement since earlier this year and that following the judge’s recent ruling, “it became obvious that the case would run into at least 2025 in all probability, I advised my client that I would be wrapping things up by year-end and that it would make sense for them to secure counsel who can go the distance on the case now that discovery will be starting. There is also the chance that I might be a witness given the allegations. I will be 74 this January and it just seems like the right time to make necessary transitions.”
McDevitt and the K&L Gates law firm are being replaced on the case by Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Warton & Garrison LLP. The latter has worked with WWE before, advising them during their decision to merge with Endeavor’s UFC to form their new publicly-traded TKO company that is still awaiting regulatory approval.
McDevitt has worked with WWE and McMahon for nearly 40 years.
“It has been a great 36-year run with a great Company and Vince [McMahon], and I am very proud of all that we accomplished during that time, and I will continue to help them any way I can,” he told Wrestlenomics.
Since 2011, Josh has been a contributing editor to Wrestling Observer/F4WOnline.com and also hosts the Punch-Out podcast. He has also written for Fight Magazine, Bloody Elbow, Bleacher Report, and other websites. He's a 2000 graduate of the University of Maine, worked in pro sports, and once was an indie ring announcer.