What Is the Mike Tyson $50 Million Lawsuit?
The Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit is a federal civil racketeering case in which Mike Tyson and Ric Flair accuse their former cannabis business partners of defrauding the brands built on their names. Tyson, Flair, Carma HoldCo Inc. and the hemp company LGNDS filed Tyson et al. v. Bronstein et al., No. 1:25-cv-15462, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on December 19, 2025.
Carma HoldCo is the licensing company that distributed the Tyson 2.0 and Ric Flair Drip cannabis brands. The 76-page complaint pleads 21 counts and names former Carma president and chairman Chad Bronstein, former CEO Adam Wilks, former chief legal and licensing officer Nicole Cosby, and shareholder James Case. It asks for a jury trial and more than $50 million in damages, legal fees and costs.
Tyson is the plaintiff, not the defendant, and the defendants deny every allegation. The sections below cover what the complaint alleges, where the case stands, and the separate disputes that share the same parties.
Why Was the Mike Tyson $50 Million Lawsuit Filed?
The Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit was filed because Tyson and Flair allege their former partners ran Carma for personal gain while using the two celebrities' names and likenesses. The complaint describes a "brazen RICO conspiracy" that it says enriched the defendants by tens of millions of dollars, at the expense of the licensing company and the two celebrities.
Tyson and Flair allege that Bronstein, Wilks and Cosby sold licensing rights that their agreements with Tyson and Flair did not allow them to sell. The complaint also alleges that company funds paid for personal expenses and that Wilks took concealed payments from a vape pen maker. Bloomberg Law reported that the suit further alleges inflated share prices and no-show jobs given to critics.
The defendants tell a different story. Their lawyer said the plaintiffs sent settlement demands before filing, including a demand that others give up their Carma shares. Those are one side's allegations, and no court has decided who is right.
What Harms Does the Mike Tyson $50 Million Lawsuit Allege?
The Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit alleges four distinct categories of misconduct, all pled under a single RICO conspiracy theory. The complaint lists wire fraud, money laundering and extortion among the underlying criminal acts, and the reporting located describes the facts behind embezzlement, self-dealing and securities fraud in the most detail. No court has ruled on any of them.
RICO Conspiracy
RICO, the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, is a federal law that lets a plaintiff sue over a pattern of listed criminal acts carried out through an enterprise, and it generally allows a winning plaintiff to recover three times proven damages.
The complaint calls the alleged scheme a "brazen RICO conspiracy" and lists wire fraud, embezzlement, money laundering, extortion, securities fraud and self-dealing as part of it. The plaintiffs say the pattern ran through Carma and enriched the defendants by tens of millions of dollars. A RICO claim requires proof of a pattern of racketeering acts, and the defendants' lawyers say the complaint has no substance.
Embezzlement
Embezzlement is the misuse of money or property by someone who was trusted to manage it.
Tyson and Flair allege that Bronstein and Wilks used more than $1 million of Carma funds for personal expenses. The listed items include private jet travel, a yacht, home renovations, a mortgage payment and lavish entertainment. The plaintiffs also allege unapproved bonuses. The defendants deny that any company money was misused.
Self-Dealing
Self-dealing is when a person in a position of trust makes decisions that benefit themselves instead of the organization they serve.
The complaint alleges that Wilks had an undisclosed kickback deal with the vape pen maker DomPen, which is not a defendant. It says he received concealed payments in exchange for ignoring DomPen's unauthorized use of Carma's intellectual property. The plaintiffs also allege that Bronstein, Wilks and Cosby sold licensing rights they had no permission to sell. Wilks's lawyer says his client did nothing wrong.
Securities Fraud
Securities fraud is a claim that someone deceived investors or distorted the value of company shares.
According to Bloomberg Law's summary of the complaint, the former executives inflated Carma's share price and paid off critics with no-show jobs. The complaint names shareholder James Case as a defendant alongside the three executives. The reporting located does not describe the specific share transactions, so the detail behind this count is not confirmed here.
What Is the Current Status of the Mike Tyson $50 Million Lawsuit?
The current status of the Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit is that it remains pending in the Northern District of Illinois before Judge Elaine E. Bucklo. No ruling on any motion to dismiss, no trial date and no settlement had been located as of October 30, 2026.
Tyson et al. v. Bronstein et al., No. 1:25-cv-15462 (N.D. Ill.)
Judge Bucklo granted the defendants' unopposed request to move their response deadline from February 23 to March 16, 2026, and set a scheduling conference for April 13, 2026. Bucklo was appointed to the federal bench in 1994 by President Bill Clinton. A Justia docket excerpt also shows a minute entry granting the plaintiffs' opposed motion for leave to amend the complaint, but the date of that entry and the changes it made were not confirmed.
| Court | U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois |
| Case Number | 1:25-cv-15462 |
| Judge | Elaine E. Bucklo |
| Filed | December 19, 2025 |
| Plaintiffs | Mike Tyson, Ric Flair, Carma HoldCo Inc., LGNDS |
| Defendants | Chad Bronstein, Adam Wilks, Nicole Cosby, James Case (the docket also lists Christopher Volo) |
| Claims | 21 counts, including a RICO conspiracy |
| Relief Sought | More than $50 million in damages, legal fees and costs; jury trial |
| Response Deadline | March 16, 2026 (extended from February 23) |
| Scheduling Conference | April 13, 2026 |
| Status | Pending; no ruling on the merits or settlement located as of October 30, 2026 |
Has the Mike Tyson $50 Million Lawsuit Settled?
No. The Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit has not settled, and no settlement had been reported as of October 30, 2026.
The $50 million figure is the minimum damages the plaintiffs demand in the complaint, not an award or an offer. Tyson and Flair are the plaintiffs, so any recovery would go to them and their companies, and there is no fund or claims process for the public.
Federal RICO law generally allows a prevailing plaintiff to recover three times proven damages, but only if a court or jury first finds liability, and none has.
Mike Tyson $50 Million Lawsuit Updates and Case Status
The latest Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit updates, with new filings, rulings and news, are listed below as they are confirmed. The timeline follows the federal case in Illinois and the related Delaware filing in date order.
Mike Tyson $50 Million Lawsuit Timeline
Carma Fires Bronstein and Cosby, According to the Delaware Complaint
Chad Bronstein and Nicole Cosby were fired from Carma in November 2023, according to the complaint they later filed in Delaware. Bloomberg Law reported that detail in February 2026, and it places their exit more than two years before Tyson and Flair sued them.
Tyson, Flair, Carma and LGNDS File Tyson v. Bronstein in the Northern District of Illinois
Mike Tyson, Ric Flair, Carma HoldCo Inc. and LGNDS filed a 76-page, 21-count complaint in the Northern District of Illinois against Chad Bronstein, Adam Wilks, Nicole Cosby and James Case. The case was assigned No. 1:25-cv-15462 and seeks more than $50 million in damages, legal fees and costs.
Defense Lawyers Call the Tyson v. Bronstein Complaint Meritless
Front Office Sports and Bloomberg Law reported the Tyson v. Bronstein complaint, and defense lawyers responded within days. Jonathan Cyrluk, who represents Bronstein and Cosby, called the complaint "fiction dressed up as a lawsuit," while Terry Campbell, who represents Wilks, said the allegations are without substance.
ABC7 Chicago Reports the Suit From Court Records
ABC7 Chicago reported on January 7, 2026, from court records, that Tyson sued the Chicago cannabis branding company Carma for $50 million and alleged kickback schemes, unauthorized bonuses and lavish spending. The station said the suit puts the losses at tens of millions of dollars, and that attorneys for the former partners deny wrongdoing.
Bronstein, Wilks and Cosby Demand Tyson 2.0's Books and Records
Bronstein, Wilks and Cosby sent Tyson 2.0 a demand for access to the company's books and records on January 20, 2026, according to their later Delaware filing. They said the demand was ignored, and the dispute became a separate Delaware case in February.
Judge Bucklo Extends the Defendants' Deadline to Respond to the Complaint
Judge Elaine E. Bucklo granted an unopposed motion in Tyson v. Bronstein that moved the defendants' response deadline from February 23 to March 16, 2026. Front Office Sports reported that she also set a scheduling conference for April 13.
Former Executives File a Books-and-Records Case Against Tyson 2.0 in Delaware
Bronstein, Wilks and Cosby sued Tyson 2.0 Inc. in the Delaware Court of Chancery in February 2026, seeking access to its books and records. Front Office Sports gave February 20 as the filing date, while a Bloomberg Law report dated February 24 said the suit was filed that Tuesday, so the exact day is not confirmed.
Extended Deadline for the Defendants' Response to the Complaint Falls Due
March 16, 2026 was the extended date for Bronstein, Wilks, Cosby and Case to respond to the Tyson v. Bronstein complaint. The reporting located does not say what the defendants filed, and a Justia docket excerpt separately shows that the judge granted the plaintiffs leave to amend the complaint.
Scheduling Conference Set in Tyson v. Bronstein
Judge Bucklo scheduled a conference for April 13, 2026, to set the schedule in Tyson v. Bronstein. No reporting located describes what happened at the conference or whether any later deadline was set.
How Have the Defendants Responded to the Mike Tyson $50 Million Lawsuit?
The defendants have responded to the Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit by denying every allegation and calling the complaint meritless. Attorney Jonathan Cyrluk, who represents Bronstein and Cosby, called it "fiction dressed up as a lawsuit." He said his clients are prepared to defeat it in court.
Cyrluk also said the plaintiffs tried to intimidate his clients before filing, with settlement demands for millions of dollars and an effort to make others surrender their Carma shares. Terry Campbell, who represents Wilks, said the allegations are without substance and amount to an attempt to coerce payment with salacious headlines.
The reporting located does not describe an answer or a motion to dismiss on the record, so the defendants' formal legal arguments are not summarized here.
| Defendant | Role at Carma | Counsel Reported |
|---|---|---|
| Chad Bronstein | Former president and chairman; now a co-founder of Real American Freestyle | Jonathan Cyrluk |
| Adam Wilks | Former CEO | Terry Campbell |
| Nicole Cosby | Former chief legal and licensing officer | Jonathan Cyrluk |
| James Case | Shareholder | Not reported |
| Christopher Volo | Listed on the docket; role not reported | Not reported |
Are There Other Lawsuits Related to the Mike Tyson $50 Million Lawsuit?
Yes. Several other disputes share parties or themes with Tyson v. Bronstein, but none is the same case.
Carma HoldCo sued Bronstein and Cosby separately in July 2025, accusing them of misappropriating confidential information about a beer brand project tied to Hogan's Real American Beer. The defendants moved to dismiss in October 2025, and Front Office Sports described that case as ongoing. Justia lists a Carma HoldCo v. Bronstein docket as No. 1:25-cv-07628, though the match to this dispute was not independently confirmed.
In Delaware, Bronstein, Wilks and Cosby say they own 1,533,190 Tyson 2.0 shares between them and want its books and records to value that stake. Tyson has also been involved in unrelated disputes: Tyson sued promoter Don King for $100 million in 1998 in Manhattan, and promoters for the gambling brand Rabona sued Tyson over a 2024 sponsorship, which the Daily Beast reported at about $1.5 million.
| Matter | Subject | Relationship to This Case | Reported Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tyson et al. v. Bronstein et al. (this page) | RICO claims over Tyson 2.0 and Ric Flair Drip | The case described on this page | Pending in N.D. Ill. |
| Carma HoldCo v. Bronstein | Alleged misuse of confidential beer brand information | Earlier suit by Carma against two of the same defendants | Motion to dismiss filed October 2025; described as ongoing |
| Bronstein, Wilks and Cosby v. Tyson 2.0 Inc. (Del. Ch.) | Books and records access | Filed by three of the same defendants in February 2026 | Pending as last reported |
| Rabona promoters v. Tyson | Alleged breach of a 2024 sponsorship contract | Unrelated Tyson dispute | Outcome not confirmed here |
| Tyson v. Don King (S.D.N.Y., 1998) | $100 million fraud claim against a former promoter | Unrelated earlier Tyson suit | Outcome not confirmed here |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit about?
The Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit is a federal case in which Tyson, Ric Flair, Carma HoldCo and LGNDS accuse former Carma executives and a shareholder of a RICO conspiracy involving embezzlement, self-dealing and securities fraud tied to the Tyson 2.0 and Ric Flair Drip cannabis brands.
Is the Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit a class action?
No. The Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit is a civil case brought by four named plaintiffs, not a class action or multidistrict litigation, and there is no group of claimants to join.
Who is suing whom in the Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit?
In the Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit, Tyson, Ric Flair, Carma HoldCo and LGNDS are suing Chad Bronstein, Adam Wilks, Nicole Cosby and James Case, and the docket also lists Christopher Volo.
Has the Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit settled?
No. The Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit has not settled, and no settlement had been reported as of October 30, 2026; the $50 million is the minimum damages demanded, not an award.
What is the status of the Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit?
The status of the Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit is pending before Judge Elaine E. Bucklo in the Northern District of Illinois, with no ruling on the merits located as of October 30, 2026.
Do the defendants deny the Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit's claims?
Yes. The defendants deny the Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit's claims, with one lawyer calling the complaint "fiction dressed up as a lawsuit" and another saying the allegations are without substance.
Is the Delaware case the same as the Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit?
No. The Delaware case is a separate books-and-records suit that Bronstein, Wilks and Cosby filed against Tyson 2.0 Inc. in February 2026, while the Mike Tyson $50 million lawsuit is the federal RICO case in Illinois.