A federal judge has paused a lawsuit against Linda McMahon; her estranged husband, Vince McMahon; and WWE, which alleges the company ignored sexual abuse by former employees.
The McMahons have denied the claims.
The defendants were granted a requested stay pending a ruling by the Supreme Court of Maryland (where the lawsuit was filed) on the Maryland Child Victims Act of 2023, which repealed the statute of limitations on child sexual abuse cases, ABC News reported. Maryland’s top court is weighing the constitutionality of that change and is expected to issue a ruling in August.
The case—known as the “Ring Boys” scandal—has been in the public eye for decades. The allegations, which first emerged in the early 1990s, hold that WWE employees sexually abused young men and boys, often teenagers, working on the ring crew, and that WWE leaders ignored the abuse. Several employees stepped down when the allegations first became public in 1992.
The lawsuit was filed mere weeks before McMahon emerged as a surprise pick to lead the Department of Education. She previously served as the administrator of the Small Business Administration in Trump’s first term and later as chair of the Trump-adjacent America First Policy Institute.
McMahon served as a top executive in WWE from the early 1980s through 2009.
