WWE Settles with Martha Hart

- WWE and Martha Hart have settled a lawsuit over royalties and the use of the late Owen Hart’s image. The settlement was announced Wednesday by Martha Hart, WWE chief executive Vince McMahon, his wife and former CEO Linda McMahon, and the Stamford, Conn., company. Detail on the settlement were not disclosed.

Owen Hart died in 1999 while being lowered into the wrestling ring at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Mo. He was 34. Martha Hart sued in June 2010, alleging that WWE did not pay royalty payments owed to Owen Hart’s estate and violated a contract restricting the use of her late husband’s name and likeness.

HARTFORD, Conn. • World Wrestling Entertainment and the widow of performer Owen Hart have settled a lawsuit over royalties and the use of Hart’s image.

The settlement was announced Wednesday by Martha Hart, WWE chief executive Vince McMahon, his wife and former CEO Linda McMahon, and the Stamford, Conn., company. The two sides did not disclose details.

Owen Hart died in 1999 while being lowered into the wrestling ring at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Mo. He was 34.

Martha Hart sued in June 2010, alleging that WWE did not pay royalty payments owed to Owen Hart’s estate and violated a contract restricting the use of her late husband’s name and likeness.

The family of a wrestler who died after a botched in-ring stunt last year has settled a wrongful death lawsuit against the World Wrestling Federation.

Owen Hart, who wrestled periodically under a mask as the Blue Blazer, died May 23, 1999, when he plunged 78 feet when the quick-release mechanism on his harness prematurely opened as he was being lowered into the ring.

The 46-count suit, filed by Hart’s widow Martha, two young children and his parents Stu and Helen, contended the stunt was dangerous and poorly planned and that the harness system was defective.

The settlement, which still needs court approval, was filed Friday with the Missouri Court of Appeals. The appeals court had been scheduled to hold a hearing today in a dispute over a document in the case.

Neither side disclosed terms of the settlement. A source close to the case told The Kansas City Star the WWF agreed to pay the Harts $18 million.

The WWF and the Hart family issued a joint statement Monday saying that the two parties “have come to an amicable agreement satisfactory to the parties.”

“We are awaiting the court’s approval of the settlement, which is expected next week. The terms and conditions of the settlement otherwise speak for themselves,” both sides said in the statement.

Not the End of Litigation The Harts, who lives in Calgary, Alberta, initially sought unspecified damages in the suit. Besides the WWF, there were 12 other defendants named in the suit, including WWF Chairman Vince McMahon, the city of Kansas City (because the death occurred in the city’s Kemper Arena), the companies that manufactured or sold the harness system and four riggers who helped set up the stunt.

If approved by the court next week, the settlement may not end the litigation in Hart’s death. In announcing the settlement, the WWF said it would “continue the case” against the manufacturers and sellers of the rigging device.

Hart, 34 and a 12-year veteran of wrestling, was part of a legendary wrestling family in Canada. His father Stu is a former wrestler and promoter, and has helped train dozens of other wrestlers. Hart was killed during an pay-for-view television event called “Over the Edge.” His fatal plunge was not seen by television viewers but was witnessed by thousands of fans in attendance. His death sparked debate over whether the professionally wrestling industry was going too far and making wrestlers take unnecessary risks to entertain its audience.ABC affiliate KMBC in Kansas City, Missouri and The Associated Press contributed to this report.