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<\/a>\n <\/div>\n\n By Scott Roeben<\/a>, on March 19 2024 <\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
As we were the first to report<\/a> back in February, Wynn Resorts filed a lawsuit against Fontainebleau for alleged poaching of employees.<\/p>\n Well, Fontainebleau is firing back with its own counterclaim, and the drama is almost unbearably glorious. Almost.<\/p>\n Read on for the latest twist in the Wynn vs. Fontainebleau kerfuffle.<\/p>\n We are not a legal expert, but the counterclaim starts in what we imagine is a novel way: \u201cIn their 1976 hit \u2018New Kid in Town,\u2019 the iconic band The Eagles wrote about the insecurities that follow fading popularity and attraction: \u2018There\u2019s a new kid in town. Everybody\u2019s talking. There\u2019s a new kid in town. People started walking. There\u2019s a new kid in town\u2026\u201d Wynn Las Vegas is now confessing those same insecurities for the whole world to see. The new Fontainebleau Las Vegas has arrived, and the employees of its competitors, including Wynn Las Vegas, have started both talking and walking. Wynn Las Vegas feels threatened. But rather than fairly compete, as the law requires, Wynn Las Vegas has confessed its inability to legitimately retain customers and talent, thus resorting to threats, intimidation, vexatious litigation, and other unlawful acts.\u201d<\/p>\n Fun fact: Vexatious Litigation was the name of our band in high school.<\/p>\n There is clearly no love lost between Fontainebleau and Wynn Las Vegas.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s the counterclaim in its entirety (.pdf format<\/a>).<\/p>\n Fontainebleau alleges a number of things in its counterclaim. That Wynn benefited from many Fontainebleau executives staying at Wynn as Fontainebleau ramped up to open. Wynn\u2019s CEO invited Fontainebleau executives to meet \u201cin an effort to start a friendly relationship.\u201d Wynn employees were friendly to Fontainebleau executives, \u201cperhaps hoping that they, too, could make a move to a new dynamic property.\u201d During their two years of staying at Wynn, Fontainebleau learned of Wynn employee dissatisfaction with Wynn leadership. Wynn is creating a \u201cfalse narrative.\u201d \u201cFontainebleau believed (mistakenly, in hindsight) that Wynn Las Vegas and its executives would act maturely in the face of competition.\u201d Fontainebleau claims, \u201cRewarding the bullying tactics has only led to more of the same. For instance, it has led to such petulant and amateurish moves by Wynn Las Vegas as issuing \u2018trespass notices\u2019 to three former chefs that left and went to work at Fontainebleau Las Vegas.\u201d Wynn\u2019s CEO Craig Billings issued a trespass order against the President of Fontainebleau Development, Brett Mufson. \u201cBillings went on to engage in an unprofessional, profanity-filled text message rant to Fontainebleau\u2019s owner and CEO, wherein Billings proceeded to defame Fontainebleau\u2019s President.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s hard to express our mixed feelings at the lawsuit and counterclaim, other than to say it\u2019s like when you hear a bus has driven off a cliff, then realize everyone onboard was a Twitter troll.<\/p>\n We love Wynn and Fontainebleau, and we hate to see them fighting. By \u201chate,\u201d of course, we mean \u201clove.\u201d<\/p>\n The counterclaim includes a text interaction between Fontainebleau\u2019s CEO Jeffrey Soffer and Wynn\u2019s CEO Craig Billings. The subject is Brett Mufson, President of Fontainebleau Development.<\/p>\n What are the odds when the Las Vegas Review-Journal covers this story (sometime in November 2025) they\u2019ll point out that the CEO of Wynn called Brett Mufson, the president of Fontainebleau Development, \u201ca fucking rank amateur\u201d?<\/p>\n The main thrust of the counterclaim: \u201cLegitimate and competently-run businesses choose to meet competition through the competitive process which recognizes the value that its employees bring to the organization. Wynn Las Vegas\u2019 threats and intimidation are not a legitimate means of business competition.\u201d<\/p>\n The bottom line is Fontainebleau is accusing Wynn of \u201cintentional interference with contractual relations.\u201d<\/p>\n From our layperson\u2019s perspective, the subtext is, \u201cHey, we were opening a new resort and we had to recruit from somewhere. If you can\u2019t retain your employees, that\u2019s on you.\u201d<\/p>\n Wynn\u2019s perspective: Not so fast.<\/p>\n In response to Fontainebleau\u2019s counterclaim, Wynn provided this statement: \u201cFontainebleau\u2019s counterclaim, filled with fictitious accusations, was clearly designed to incite social media chatter and is devoid of answers to our original claim. The facts of our original claim against Fontainebleau are clear: Fontainebleau induced Wynn employees to breach their lawful employment contracts. We believe Fontainebleau engaged in that practice because we believe they lack the ability to develop, and based upon numerous recent news reports, to retain talent. They cannot solve these widely reported problems by encouraging employees to break the lawful employment contacts they have negotiated with other employers. We strongly objected to that behavior because it is clearly unethical, and we shall soon find out if a court believes it is also unlawful. We clearly hope Fontainebleau will achieve the success to which it aspires; their success, if it comes, will benefit all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n In case you were skimming (we know how you are), this could be one of the best pieces of shade in human history: \u201ctheir success, if it comes, will benefit all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n Easily one of the cruelest uses of \u201cif,\u201d ever, and we have witnessed some world-class pith in our day. Kudos.<\/p>\n We can\u2019t guarantee there\u2019s not going to be some social media chatter, though, sorry not sorry.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/vitalvegas\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/wynn_vs_fontainebleau2-845x563.jpg\"\/)
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