Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker has hired new legal representation as he faces accusations of sexual misconduct from local massage therapists.
According to Jean Marbella of The Baltimore Sun, Tucker has turned to Clare Locke Firm, an Alexandria, Va.-based boutique firm that specializes in “high-profile reputational attacks,” according to its website. Marbella adds that the firm has “developed a reputation of its own for winning big verdicts and settlements, going hard against opponents and being part of a movement to make it easier to sue the media and publishers for defamation.”
“We are unapologetic about protecting our clients’ rights as far as fairness and accuracy in reporting,” co-founder Tom Clare said in an interview with The Baltimore Sun. “It’s advocacy, not bullying or intimidation.”
Since its founding in 2014, Clare Locke has handled several high-profile cases over the past decade or so.
Perhaps the biggest of those cases came when the firm represented Dominion in a defamation case against Fox News, claiming that the network knowingly aired false claims that the company’s voting machines flipped votes from Donald Trump to Joe Biden in the 2020 U.S. presidential election. Fox agreed to pay out a $787.5 million settlement just before the trial began, the largest defamation payment on record.
The firm also successfully sued Rolling Stone Magazine and a writer in 2016 for libel over an article about an alleged gang rape at the University of Virginia and the school’s treatment of the alleged victim. A jury awarded $3 million to Clare Locke’s client, an associate dean at UVA who claimed she was made the “chief villain” in Rolling Stone’s article.
Clare said that he and his firm will await the results of the NFL’s investigation into before determining how to proceed. The Ravens have taken a similar stance in regard to their looming decision on Tucker.
“When the dust settles, we’re going to take a look at everything,” Clare said. “We don’t just charge in and start filing lawsuits. I think our goal is to make sure, one way or another, our clients’ interests are protected, and the record is clear on what did or did not happen.”
Tucker is also represented by Joe Terry of Williams & Connolly. The Washington-based firm won a dismissal of a defamation suit filed by former NFL quarterback Brett Favre against Ravens Hall of Fame tight end and sportscaster Shannon Sharpe.
