(NewsNation) — Former CNN anchor Don Lemon has sued X owner Elon Musk, accusing the tech mogul of seducing him into a TV deal — which was squashed before the pilot ever aired.
The lawsuit accuses the Tesla billionaire of fraud, misappropriation of Lemon’s name, negligent misrepresentation and likeness and breach of express contract for “The Don Lemon Show.”
The first episode, a one-on-one interview with Musk, was marked with tension and at-times tough questions, bringing their exclusive partnership to end. According to Variety reporting, Musk called it quits via text using the words “contract is canceled.”
But that’s the problem. Lemon’s lawsuit alleges there was no written contract with X, a fact that shocked civil litigator and attorney Richard Schoenstein.
Schoenstein said Friday that the lack of written proof will make it harder to prove Lemon’s claims that Musk used his “name, likeness, identity, and reputation” before reneging their “express agreement” and failing “to compensate him, citing to false pretenses for their breach of the partnership agreement.”
“Don Lemon basically has three different categories of claims. He has breach of contract, he has fraud claims and he has misappropriation of likeness,” Schoenstein said on “Dan Abrams Live.” “Those are the three categories. The breach of contract claims are made much harder because none of it’s in writing.”
However, Lemon’s allegations are also not bound to what is in a written contract, which Schoenstein sees as a potential pain point for the CEO.
Another aspect of the lawsuit is the former anchor’s claim that not only was he never compensated the at-least $1.5 million per year — he put his own money into the project.
“If they had a partnership, which we think is pretty established, and he invested money towards that endeavor and then Musk canceled it, that seems like the easiest money to get,” Schoenstein added.
All in all, the lawsuit is keeping both Lemon and Musk’s names floating around the press, leading Schoenstein to argue the conflict is benefiting both of them.
“It should settle,” he said, clarifying that their celebrity status might change that. “It’s hard to say.”