The sons of baseball legend Roberto Clemente, Roberto Clemente Jr. and Luis Clemente, are facing a lawsuit for allegedly selling the rights to their father’s life story to multiple parties. Filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, the lawsuit accuses the brothers of “fraudulently” selling and reselling the exclusive rights for financial gain, specifically through deals related to their father’s legacy, which include both film and commercial sponsorship agreements.
The plaintiff, Inside the Park LLC, alleges that the Clemente brothers initially sold them the exclusive rights to develop a feature film based on Roberto Clemente’s life, particularly focusing on the 2013 book *Clemente – The True Legacy of an Undying Hero*. However, the lawsuit claims that the brothers had already sold these same rights to Legendary Pictures Productions in 2015, in a deal that had not yet expired. As a result, Inside the Park LLC asserts that they were misled into spending considerable time and money on the project, only to discover that the rights were not exclusively theirs to develop.
In addition to the film rights dispute, the lawsuit points to other commercial ventures involving the Clemente brand, including a multi-million dollar mini-series deal and a sponsorship agreement with Capital One for the naming rights to Roberto Clemente Day, an annual Major League Baseball event.
The plaintiff claims these deals further exemplify the alleged fraudulent behavior of the Clemente brothers, which has led to significant financial losses and reputational damage.
Inside the Park LLC is suing for breach of contract, fraud, and breach of good faith. They are seeking $5 million in damages to recover the substantial sums they invested into the film project based on what they claim were deceptive actions by the Clemente family.
Along with the Clemente brothers, the lawsuit names their licensing entity, 21 in Right, their agency CMG Worldwide, its president Mark Roesler, and Legendary Pictures Productions as defendants.
