Carlsen: Niemann is Bad in Both Chess and Lawsuits. Dismiss the Case.
Citing 3 pages of precedents, Carlsen legal team said that Hans Niemann is a money-hungry failure who is trying to cash out on his misbehavior.
Hans Niemann (Getty Images)
A rude but legally convincing motion states: After years of trying to curate a reputation as the bad boy of chess, Plaintiff Hans Niemann wants to cash in by blaming others for the fallout from his own admitted misconduct. Niemann’s Amended Complaint concedes that he has a well-known history of cheating. But rather than dealing with the unsurprising consequences of his own actions, Niemann now seeks to shift blame to reigning World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen and others, claiming a wholly implausible conspiracy to defame and boycott Niemann that somehow damaged his already dubious reputation to the tune of $100 million.
The complaint, written by Carlsen’s legal team at Axinn, Veltrop & Harkrider LLP, a top New York law firm, paints Niemann’s initial complaint as a series of bogus claims, badly written and meritless.
With all due respect to the law firms (on both sides), the case is far from over. First of all, Niemann indeed has legal standing to file the case in the first place, and second — the judge will probably be tempted to try it in open court, simply because it’s such an attractive story.
And it is unclear what the outcome of this case will be, but it is certain that the legal wrangling between Hans Niemann, Magnus Carlsen and Chess.com will continue. The world of competitive chess will be watching closely to see how it plays out.
You write that “the judge will probably be tented to try it in open court” — do you mean “tempted”?