Dr. Phil’s bankrupt company wants court to rebuke creditors’ ‘personal attacks’
The accusations are not letting up in the bankruptcy dispute between Dr. Phil McGraw’s Fort Worth-based Merit Street Media and its creditors.
Merit Street Media declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy in early July and filed a lawsuit against its partner, Trinity Broadcasting Network, accusing TBN of sabotaging McGraw’s new “nationally acclaimed network” that launched in 2024.
McGraw’s production company, Peteski Productions, is asking the court to issue a civility order against creditors, after Fort Worth-based Professional Bull Riders and Trinity Broadcasting alleged that McGraw orchestrated the Merit Street bankruptcy in “bad faith” to syphon money to McGraw’s new media venture, Envoy Media Co.
Envoy, a streaming service featuring news and other programming, was formed on July 1, a day before Merit Street filed for bankruptcy.
According to court documents, the requested civility order is similar to one granted in the highly-publicized Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni case. Such orders require parties to adhere to rules of professional conduct and avoid making damaging or false statements to the press.
“Recently, a number of filings in this case have included intemperate language and personal attacks against the parties, their counsel and the Court,” Peteski Productions’ motion states. “All individuals filing documents in this case whether represented or not are advised that they should not in any submission to this Court use language that is disrespectful of the parties, their counsel or the Court.”
Peteski also allege that PBR and TBN’s actions were intended to generate media interest and depress the value of Merit Street Media in the bankruptcy case. Peteski said millions of dollars were invested to save Merit Street.
McGraw ended his long-running show “Dr. Phil” in early 2023 and announced later that year that he would start a new Fort Worth-based media company with news and a new talk show. “Dr. Phil Primetime” launched on April 2, 2024. About four months later, 40 to 50 employees were laid off as part of “ongoing consolidations of departments and roles in efforts to achieve efficiencies at the highest level.”
In November, the Professional Bull Riders parted ways with Merit Street Media over a contract dispute involving payments of rights fees that were owed to the organization.
According to the lawsuit, TBN saddled Merit Street Media with “unsustainable debt of over $100 million.”
Peteski objected to “false statements” from TBN alleging that McGraw created zero episodes although there was an obligation to create 160 90-minute episodes and “pocketed millions of dollars.