Lawyers for FTX investors have reportedly served Shaquille O'Neal the court papers that would make him appear in court regarding the FTX case. The basketball star was heavily affiliated with the bankrupt crypto exchange when it was still in existence.
The Shaq FTX ad was very popular when the crypto exchange was still operating. However, since the FTX collapse, the lawyers representing the investors have been trying to reach out to the celebrities who promoted the FTX exchange.
The veteran basketball player Shaquille O'Neal was part of the group of celebrities who participated in promoting the bankrupt crypto exchange. However, it seemed the former basketball player was trying to escape the court papers. He had been giving several excuses for not receiving the court papers. But finally, the FTX lawyers were able to trace Shaq down and serve him the court papers.
Previously, Adam Moskowitz, a lawyer representing the FTX investors, said they had tried to serve the retired basketball player the court papers, but he has been evading them. Last month, they attempted to serve Shaq the court papers, but he came up with an excuse. Shaquille O'Neal said he didn't get the court papers because the FTX lawyers threw the court papers on his moving car. He said the process servers tossed papers into his moving car, and he didn't know they were officially from the court.
Shaq is among the dozens of celebrities sued for promoting FTX to the public. While some celebrities got deeply muddled in the FTX crash, a few others, like Taylor Swift, narrowly escaped the tangle.
Not only are celebrities like Shaq being prosecuted, but sports teams involved in advertising the failed crypto exchange are also being served court papers so they can appear in the case. Shaq was so affiliated with the FTX that the crypto exchange even gave him a name for his massive promotion.
They named Shaq "Shaqtoshi," similar to the name of the Bitcoin founder Satoshi Nakamoto. But after the FTX collapse, Shaq immediately distanced himself from anything relating to the crypto exchange. The former basketball player said he was only a paid spokesperson who did his job and got paid. "I was just a paid spokesperson for a commercial," Shaq said when the news of FTX's bankruptcy broke out.
How did FTX Lawyers Serve Shaq The Lawsuit?
For many months, the lawyers representing the FTX investors have been tracking down Shaq to serve the court papers. After giving an excuse over the moving car incident, the process servers finally tracked Shaq down on Tuesday night in Miami at the Kaseya Center (formerly FTX Arena). During Game 4 of the NBA's Eastern Conference Finals, the process server approached Shaq and served the court papers.
Apparently, Shaq was one of the game's commentators before the process server came. According to Adam Moskowitz, a lawyer representing the FTX investors, he said the process server bought a ticket to the Tuesday game between the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics and served the lawsuit.
The major content of the lawsuit was that the former basketball player violated securities laws by selling unregistered securities. The Shaq FTX ad was the major attraction to this case as it highlighted the violation of securities laws.