In a dramatic\u200c turn\u2064 of events, a major talent agency has accused several former agents of betraying the agency<\/strong> by \u200cstealing confidential client information to\u2063 establish a competing\u2064 management\u200c firm, Range Media Partners. \u200bThe\u200b lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, claims that \u2063these agents \u2063spent months in \u200b2020 transferring volumes of sensitive data, including clients’\u200b ongoing and future projects, branding strategies, and business plans, to their personal devices.<\/p>\n The\u200c lawsuit further alleges that the agents used Telegram<\/strong>, a \u2064private messaging\u2062 app, to avoid detection by the agency.\u200d This covert\u200b operation was part of a broader strategy to launch Range \u2062Media Partners, \u2062circumventing California law and Writers Guild of America (WGA) requirements.<\/p>\n The lawsuit describes Range \u2064Media Partners as an “unlicensed talent agency built on deceit.” According to the suit, Range operates\u2064 under the guise of \u2064a management company, allowing it\u200c to engage in lucrative transactions that are off-limits to\u200d legitimate\u200d talent \u2064agencies. This deceptive practice,\u2064 the lawsuit claims, gives Range an unfair advantage in the \u2063market.<\/p>\n Peter \u2064Micelli, one of the founders of Range, is a \u2064central figure \u200cin this controversy. \u200cMicelli, \u2063who worked \u2063at the agency for over \u206220 years and was co-head of the TV department\u2064 until 2018, is accused of\u2062 recruiting four \u200bother agents\u2014Jack Whigham, David Bugliari, \u2062Michael Cooper, \u2063and Mick Sullivan\u2014to join the new\u200c management firm in early 2020. \u2063These\u2062 agents allegedly gathered intelligence for their\u2062 new \u200cventure \u2064while still\u2064 employed at \u200cthe agency, even \u200dsoliciting assistants \u200dto provide confidential information such as client offer letters, scripts, and activity\u200b reports. Two of\u200b these assistants\u2063 were later hired as managers at Range.<\/p>\n The lawsuit also\u200c claims that Range used its \u2063clients’ photos in \u200dmarketing \u200dmaterials without their\u200d consent, falsely suggesting a connection to the new firm. This unauthorized use of client images is \u200canother point of contention in \u200bthe\u200d ongoing legal \u2063battle.<\/p>\n The lawsuit\u2064 alleges that Range \u200cexploited a new WGA code of conduct, which prohibits agencies from owning\u2062 a significant stake in a production company or taking fees from producers to package them into projects. By posing as a management company, Range could offer high-profile clients the ability to avoid paying a commission by instead permitting Range to take a \u200bproducer fee \u2063or credit on a client’s project. \u200cThis loophole allowed Range\u2064 to evade the rules and gain \u200dan unfair market advantage.<\/p>\n The lawsuit\u200d notes that \u200dA+E Networks acquired a stake in Range in early\u2064 2022 and announced plans to partner on scripted TV projects set up by Range.\u2064 This arrangement would\u200b be \u200dprohibited under\u200b the WGA code \u200cif Range were considered an\u200c agency, further complicating the legal landscape.<\/p>\n The\u200c lawsuit includes claims of\u200d contract interference, interference\u200d with\u2062 economic advantage, aiding and abetting the breach \u200cof fiduciary duty, and violation of the state Business and Professions Code. These allegations paint a complex picture of the competitive and often \u2063cutthroat nature of the talent management\u2064 industry.<\/p>\n This\u200b case highlights the ongoing tension between traditional talent agencies and emerging management\u2064 firms. The use of \u2064technology to transfer sensitive \u2064information and \u200bthe \u2062exploitation of \u2063regulatory \u200dloopholes\u200c are indicative of broader \u200dtrends \u2063in the industry. As the legal battle unfolds, it will\u200c be \u2063interesting to see\u200c how these\u200d dynamics\u200b evolve and what\u200d implications they may \u2064have\u2063 for the future\u2062 of talent management.<\/p>\n Did you enjoy this article? Share it on your social channels and let us know your\u2063 thoughts!<\/p>\n Don\u2019t miss out on the latest updates! Follow us on social media to stay informed\u200d about the newest releases.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" CAA is suing former agents for allegedly stealing confidential client data to form Range Media Partners, a rival firm. The lawsuit claims Range operates as an unlicensed talent agency, exploiting loopholes to gain an unfair market advantage. #EntertainmentNews #LegalDrama<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":11021,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11019","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-movie"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/movieetv.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11019","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/movieetv.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/movieetv.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieetv.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieetv.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11019"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/movieetv.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11019\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieetv.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11021"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/movieetv.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11019"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieetv.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11019"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieetv.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11019"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}The covert operations<\/h2>\n
The core \u200cof the lawsuit<\/h2>\n
Key figures and their \u2062roles<\/h2>\n
Unauthorized\u2063 use of client photos<\/h2>\n
Exploiting the WGA code of conduct<\/h2>\n
A+E\u2064 Networks’ involvement<\/h2>\n
Legal claims and implications<\/h2>\n
Industry\u2063 reflections<\/h2>\n