Floyd Mayweather Jr. has called off his $100 million defamation lawsuit against Business Insider, which has been dismissed with prejudice. Both parties will handle their own legal fees, and it remains unclear if a settlement was reached.
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The $100 million defamation fight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Business Insider is over.
The lawsuit, filed just over a year ago, has been voluntarily dismissed with prejudice, meaning Mayweather cannot refile the same claims. Counterclaims that were made by Business Insider have also been permanently dropped, and each side will handle their own fees and costs. The judge signed an order dismissing the case on Tuesday. It was not clear whether there was a settlement, and representatives for both sides did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Mayweather, who has never lost a bout and boasts career earnings of more than $1.1 billion, sought at least $100 million in damages in his lawsuit, lodged in New York federal court.
The suit centered around reporting by reporter Daniel Geiger about real estate deals Mayweather publicly discussed, including an agreement to buy a 62-building Manhattan apartment portfolio. Geiger reported last March that “there is no evidence there has been a sale.”
The lawsuit alleged that Geiger “embarked on a campaign of harassment and defamation, characterized by aggressive and misleading journalism that not only distorts the truth but seems driven by a deep-seated bias against Mr. Mayweather’s success.” It also claimed Geiger “refused” to review documentation proving the deals in question happened, and that he actively sought to “undermine” Mayweather’s business ventures and “humiliate” him publicly.
Business Insider argued that Mayweather failed to show there was “actual malice,” which is the necessary standard to prove defamation.
Mayweather, 49, had announced his retirement from pro boxing in 2017, but he un-retired in February of this year. He has a few bouts planned, including a that will take place at the Sphere in Las Vegas and an .
Mayweather voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit, which means he cannot refile the same claims, but the specific reasons for the dismissal have not been disclosed.
The lawsuit centered around reporting by Daniel Geiger regarding Mayweather's real estate deals, specifically questioning the existence of a sale for a Manhattan apartment portfolio.
A dismissal with prejudice means that the case is permanently closed and the plaintiff cannot bring the same claims back to court.
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