Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs accuses Diageo of ‘unlawful retaliation’ within the Cîroc Vodka & DeLeón Tequila case, alleging in his court docket submitting that Diageo has no authorized foundation to finish its model offers with him. Right here’s the most recent.
Sean Combs alleged in his newest court docket submitting in opposition to spirits large Diageo that the corporate engaged in “unlawful and outrageous retaliation” in opposition to him resulting from his authorized motion in opposition to the conglomerate over allegations of neglect, racism, and unequal distribution, manufacturing, and gross sales of his co-owned DeLeón Tequila model.
Combs asserted in a short filed in court docket that Diageo’s actions function a warning to anybody who makes an attempt to show its conduct. The alleged retaliation contains Diageo’s makes an attempt to sever its relationship with Combs over each DeLeón Tequila and Cîroc Vodka. The latter is a model that Combs has introduced historic success, having cultivated its picture for fifteen years.
Additional, Diageo has gone as far as to dam Combs from delivering a deliberate speech at a distributor occasion and issuing directives to cease Combs Wines, co-owner of DeLeón Tequila alongside Diageo, from talking with distributors and retailers concerning the model.
“The message is obvious — if you happen to dare to make clear Diageo’s conduct, you’ll be punished,” the submitting states.
In accordance with the submitting, Diageo has no authorized foundation to finish its contracts with Diddy, who has completed the whole lot in submitting his lawsuit in strict accordance with all Diageo agreements. Combs asserts that he has happy all obligations underneath his DeLeón three way partnership settlement, together with funding.
The submitting features a letter Combs’ lawyer, John Hueston, despatched to Diageo’s lawyer, demanding that the corporate finish “its plainly retaliatory and illegal conduct.”
“Whereas Diageo has self-servingly misrepresented the targets of Combs’ lawsuit within the press, its try and retaliate in opposition to Combs for asserting his authorized rights is not going to work in court docket,” wrote Hueston.
The submitting serves as Combs’ response to Diageo’s movement to compel arbitration and dismiss his lawsuit, which he filed in Might in New York State Supreme Court docket. In his submitting, he asks the court docket for injunctive aid to implement an “equal remedy” settlement, during which Diageo acknowledged it could deal with Combs’ DeLeón Tequila because it treats the opposite two tequila manufacturers the corporate owns, Casamigos and Don Julio.
Earlier than that settlement, Combs had complained to Diageo about racially insensitive incidents, reminiscent of the corporate presenting Combs with a watermelon-flavored model of the tequila regardless of his objections and makes an attempt to teach Diageo concerning the racial connotations associated to watermelon. Additional, Combs alleges that Diageo labeled his tequila as a “Black” model solely marketable to city prospects.
Combs preliminary complaints stemmed from the corporate’s neglect of the DeLeón model, together with allocating all its agave — the principle ingredient in tequila — to its different tequilas, erratic manufacturing resulting in repeated shortages of DeLeónm and errors that led to a cargo of the tequila being impounded by Mexican authorities.
Diageo claims that Combs violated clauses that prevented him from disparaging the corporate or revealing confidential info. Combs’ lawyer Hueston notes that underneath New York State regulation, an “absolute litigation privilege” permits him to boost these points in a lawsuit.
“That privilege protects a celebration’s unfettered proper of entry to the courts and prohibits Diageo from punishing Mr. Combs for exercising that proper,” says Hueston, including that, paradoxically, a Diageo spokesperson had disparaged Combs in public statements outdoors of litigation.
Combs redacted over 2,500 phrases from his authentic criticism, going to nice lengths to keep away from revealing confidential info. A decide later decided that nearly all redacted content material might be unsealed.
“Of the greater than 2,500 phrases that Combs filed underneath seal, a mere ten phrases have been ordered to stay underneath seal,” famous Hueston, who additional disputed Diageo’s declare that the lawsuit was an try and keep away from arbitration, which is required of their contract for disputes.
Diageo additionally claimed that Combs breached their settlement by elevating points relationship again to 2007, having beforehand agreed to drop these complaints. However Hueston posits that nothing prevents Combs from discussing these points as background within the criticism when they’re instantly related to the historical past of unfair remedy and racially insensitive incidents.
Timeline of Occasions within the Diddy vs. Diageo Dispute
2007 – Diageo reaches out to Combs to faucet into his widely-known title and affect to spice up its struggling vodka model, Cîroc. Combs agrees to tackle a pivotal position in all points of artistic, advertising, product improvement, and innovation for Cîroc.
2009 – Ciroc’s annual gross sales surge from 75,000 circumstances to 400,000 circumstances, experiencing a staggering gross sales progress of over 3,000% since Combs started advertising it. It might attain roughly 2.6 million circumstances offered per 12 months by 2014.
2013 – Leveraging their profitable collaboration with Cîroc, Combs solidifies his partnership with Diageo by buying the posh tequila model DeLeón in a 50/50 partnership.
2021 – After years of elevating issues of unequal remedy and neglect by Diageo, Combs will get the corporate to comply with an “equal remedy” clause of their contract, pledging to deal with DeLeón because it treats its different tequila manufacturers, Casamigos and Don Julio.
Might 31, 2023 – Combs takes authorized motion in opposition to the spirits conglomerate, accusing Diageo of neglect, racism, and unequal remedy of their co-owned tequila model’s distribution, manufacturing, and gross sales. He seeks injunctive aid to compel Diageo to satisfy the “equal remedy” provision agreed upon in 2021.
June 27, 2023 – Diageo recordsdata a movement to dismiss the case and switch it to secret arbitration whereas concurrently endeavoring to sever its connections with Combs over each DeLeón Tequila and Cîroc Vodka. Combs’ lawyer, John Hueston, calls this transfer akin to “firing a whistleblower.”
June 30, 2023 – A decide unseals important parts of Combs’ lawsuit in opposition to Diageo, revealing new allegations of discriminatory habits, together with presenting Combs with a racially insensitive watermelon-flavored DeLeón, calling Cîroc an “city African American model tied to at least one character,” withholding agave from DeLeón whereas allocating it to different manufacturers, encountering points with paperwork leading to a cargo being impounded by Mexican authorities, and experiencing inconsistent manufacturing resulting in frequent shortages.
July 12, 2023 – Hueston sends a letter to Diageo’s lawyer demanding that the corporate put an finish to its retaliatory and illegal actions in the direction of Combs, insisting Combs did nothing to violate his contracts and thus gave the corporate no authorized cause to terminate the enterprise relationship.
July 18, 2023 – Combs accuses Diageo of “unlawful and outrageous retaliation” by its makes an attempt to terminate their agreements, hinder his position with the manufacturers, and make disparaging statements. Combs makes these factors in a movement to oppose Diageo’s try and compel arbitration and dismiss the case.