MSG Wins Summary Judgment in Charles Oakley Lawsuit As Judge Cites Autobiography

MSG Wins Summary Judgment in Charles Oakley Lawsuit As Judge Cites Autobiography By Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Substack SDNY COURTHOUSE, Aug 14 – Following the ejection of former Knick Charles Oakley from Madison Square Garden by security guards who had just conferred by James Dolan, a lawsuit is still proceeding in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.  Back on December 22, 2020 Judge Richard J. Sullivan held arguments. Inner City Press live tweeted them here Jump cut to November 20, 2024 after remand from the Second Circuit, a hearing on the loss of Oakley's text message, thread On April 14 Judge Sullivan ruled  'Mastro may continue to represent MSG, so long as he does not participate at the Mayor’s Office in any matter involving MSG.'"Full Order on Patreon here On April 25, after a hearing Inner City Press covered, this: "Oakley's motion to strike the six witness declarations and preclude MSG from relying on those witnesses is DENIED, as is Oakley's request to reopen discovery and depose these witnesses. (Signed by Judge Richard J. Sullivan Sitting by Designation on 4/25/2025)." On October 31, 2025 Magistrate Judge Robyn F. Tarnofsky ruled that Oakley must pay on "MOTION for Attorney Fees and costs. filed by MSG Networks, Inc., Sphere Entertainment Group, LLC, Madison Square Garden Sports Corp. For the reasons set forth above, Defendant's Fee Motion is GRANTED IN PART, in that Plaintiff is ORDERED to pay $642,337.65 in attorneys' fees and costs to Defendant, consisting of $604,315.15 in attorneys' fees and $38,022.50 in costs, within 21 days of the date of this order." On August 14, 2026 Judge Sullivan issued an order granting summary judgment to MSG, citing a draft of Oakley's autobiography: "filed by MSG Networks, Inc., Sphere Entertainment Group, LLC, Madison Square Garden Sports Corp. For the reasons stated above, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that MSG's motion for summary judgment is GRANTED. The Clerk of Court is respectfully directed to terminate the motion pending at Doc. No. 397. The case, however, shall remain open while the Court adjudicates Oakley's motion for Rule 11 sanctions (Doc. No. 410), and MSG's motion for contempt (see Doc. Nos. 473, 483). (Signed by Judge Richard J. Sullivan on 8/14/2026)" - full order on Patreon here More on X for Subscribers here and Substack here The case is Oakley v. Dolan et al., 17-cv-6903 (Sullivan / Tarnofsky) *** Your support means a lot. As little as $5 a month helps keep us going and grants you access to exclusive bonus material on our Patreon page. Click here to become a patron. Feedback: Editorial [at] innercitypress.com SDNY Press Room 500 Pearl Street, NY NY 10007 USA Mail: Box 130222 NY NY 10013 Reporter's mobile (and weekends): 718-716-3540 Other, earlier Inner City Press are listed here, and some are available in the ProQuest service, and now on Lexis-Nexis.  Copyright 2006-2025 Inner City Press, Inc. To request reprint or other permission, e-contact Editorial [at] innercitypress.com