Former OL Oher Blindsided: Suing Tuohy's Claiming They Never Adopted Him

[aristocrat]

3 hours ago, unbillievable said:

 

I did some research and the state granted Conservatorship because Oher was poor.  "Impoverishment" is a qualifying disability.

 

This lawsuit maybe about Oher getting control of his personal finances.

does he not have control of his finances? Or did someone tell him they probably made millions and he doesn’t realize they didn’t? 

[Just Jack]

3 hours ago, JoPoy88 said:

link on that research? 

Impoverished and poor mean the same thing.  
 

https://www.thesaurus.com/browse/poor

[colin]

11 hours ago, unbillievable said:

 

From what I read, He doesn't just sign random papers. There has to be a hearing of some kind where professionals are involved, a doctor and judge usually, with proof of an inability for an adult to handle their responsibilities.

 

Life isn't like the Little Mermaid movie.

 

 

tell that to the Caribbean lobster who won't stop serenading my wife every time she jumps in the pool! 

[Bob Jones]

Of course there’s always at least two sides to every story, and yesterday, the family spoke out:

 

https://nypost.com/2023/08/14/the-blind-side-family-responds-to-michael-ohers-lawsuit-against-them/

[Don Otreply]

18 hours ago, teef said:

this is why i don't let people make movies about me.

Teef, you are an example to all of us,

[ddaryl]

18 hours ago, teef said:

this is why i don't let people make movies about me.

 

 

ahh, that's a shame... I really loved Revenge of the Nerds

[SoTier]

9 hours ago, hondo in seattle said:

Elsewhere, I read he sold for $213 million.  And he still owns 11 Taco Bells which probably nets him roughly $2 million/year. He's not hurting for money. 

 

It's hard to imagine him, with the kind of financial resources he has, throwing his morals and values to the wind to screw his 'adopted' son for a little more money that he doesn't really need.  

 

I'm not sure if you are being sarcastic or if you are naieve about human nature.   Financial success doesn't necessarily mean a person has "morals and values".  In fact, many successful businessmen have built their success by exploiting their employees or ruining their competitors, and numerous very wealthy people have been convicted of fraud, embezzlement, etc for a relatively small amount of money. 

 

7 hours ago, JoPoy88 said:

Exactly. Guess the prevailing opinion in this case at this board is “he got got” and it’s all good. Guess his white saviors get to profit on the story more than him, even though without Oher and his talent and subsequent success there is no story at all.

 

This place surprises me more and more every day. And mostly not in a good way. 

 

Sadly, I'm not surprised at all.  I think too many fans don't see NFL players as people but as Madden game pieces.  There's a lot of resentment, too, that successful NFLers make a lot of money over their careers, at least some of which is based on racism from some posters.

 

 

6 hours ago, syhuang said:

Now it’s getting more interesting…….

 

Michael Oher's 'adoptive' brother SJ Tuohy claims ex-NFL star demanded money from the family in exchange for keeping quiet... as he insists 'no one was surprised' by lawsuit

——————————————

'If he says he learned that [the conservatorship] in February, I find that very hard to believe. I was curious today to go back to our family group texts to see what had been said. There was things back in 2020 and 2021 that were like, "if you guys give me this much money, I won't go public with things." So I don't know if that's true.

——————————————

 

 

 

Tuohy Family Breaks Silence On The Michael Oher Accusations: Sean Tuohy Calls Allegations ‘Insulting’

 

———————————————————

The 63-year-old went on to claim that he and his wife did not profit off the film, The Blind Side. “We didn’t make any money off the movie,” he alleged. “Well, Michael Lewis (the author of the book ‘The Blind Side’) gave us half of his share. Everybody in the family got an equal share, including Michael. It was about $14,000, each. We were never offered money; we never asked for money. My money is well-documented; you can look up how much I sold my company for.”

 

…

…

Furthermore, Sean addressed Michael’s conservatorship claims. “Michael was obviously living with us for a long time, and the NCAA didn’t like that,” Sean claimed. “They said the only way Michael could go to Ole Miss was if he was actually part of the family. I sat Michael down and told him, ‘If you’re planning to go to Ole Miss — or even considering Ole Miss — we think you have to be part of the family. This would do that, legally.’ We contacted lawyers who had told us that we couldn’t adopt over the age of 18; the only thing we could do was to have a conservatorship. We were so concerned it was on the up-and-up that we made sure the biological mother came to court.”

——————————————————-

 

I have real issues with Sean Touhey's statement above.  It's simply untrue that they couldn't adopt Oher over the age of 18 in Tennessee: Adult Adoption in Tennessee.   All it would require would be Oher's consent.   Adoption would not have given the Touheys control of Oher's finances but it would give Oher legal rights to the Touhey estate if Sean or his wife died.   The conservatorship enabled the Touhey's to control Oher's fiances and profit from it indefinitely.

 

2 hours ago, aristocrat said:

does he not have control of his finances? Or did someone tell him they probably made millions and he doesn’t realize they didn’t? 

 

The conservatorship is still in effect, so the Touhey's still have control over some of his finances.  I imagine that this will all come out in the court case.

 

Edited August 15, 2023 by SoTier

[RunTheBall]

Didn’t the father sell his fast food franchises for 200 million? 

 

So we are supposed to believe this family took in Mike when he was a kid because they wanted to get a small percentage of a movie that would be made after he got into college (which they helped), made it to the NFL and made tens of millions as a LT?

 

Sounds like Mike blew all his money and is looking for some cash to me but as always, need more information before drawing a firm conclusion.

[Ya Digg?]

21 minutes ago, RunTheBall said:

Didn’t the father sell his fast food franchises for 200 million? 

 

So we are supposed to believe this family took in Mike when he was a kid because they wanted to get a small percentage of a movie that would be made after he got into college (which they helped), made it to the NFL and made tens of millions as a LT?

 

Sounds like Mike blew all his money and is looking for some cash to me but as always, need more information before drawing a firm conclusion.

So you need more information but have no problem completely throwing him under the bus? Sounds like you are contradicting yourself there

[Bleeding Bills Blue]

19 hours ago, Ethan in Cleveland said:

And if someone made millions off your life story you would be ok with that?

 

It's their life story too though.  He doesn't have a life story without them.  If he's just looking for an equal share he needs to prove he didn't get it.

 

As for why now?  Thats a good question.  You'd think he would have had this conversation with his agent when he signed in the NFL, or maybe his book agent when he wrote his autobiography in 2011.  Maybe it would have come up in the autobiography?  Who know?  

 

Seems like they had money before they even met him as well

https://www.franchisetimes.com/article_archive/auspex-capital-unwinds-rgt-management-with-dose-of-philosophy/article_654b7608-e9b5-5062-929f-e96db26aaa2e.html

 

 

Edited August 15, 2023 by Bleeding Bills Blue

[Bleeding Bills Blue]

21 minutes ago, Ya Digg? said:

So you need more information but have no problem completely throwing him under the bus? Sounds like you are contradicting yourself there

 

Michael had no problem throwing them under the bus.  Sounds like a family having a falling out and him taking it public.  This likely goes nowhere and gets settled because at the end of the day itll probably be two millionaires fighting over a couple million dollars.  

[Mr. WEO]

8 hours ago, JoPoy88 said:

Exactly. Guess the prevailing opinion in this case at this board is “he got got” and it’s all good. Guess his white saviors get to profit on the story more than him, even though without Oher and his talent and subsequent success there is no story at all.

 

This place surprises me more and more every day. And mostly not in a good way. 

 

Certainly I don't think that.  It just seemed strange to me that after all these years, a guy who has signed 4 different contracts with 3 different team, signed multiple book deals, etc would suddenly wonder where the film money went from years ago.  Now the family is claiming he didn't just "find this out"...

 

More to come i guess...

[unbillievable]

I think I got the narrative now:

 

The Tuoy's were boosters for Ole Miss, so the only way for Oher to attend was for him to be under their guardianship. Since he turned 18 the equivalent would be a Conservatorship. Michael was told it was the same as adoption. (Legal guardian = adoption? maybe?)

 

Adoption would also work, but that can take years. That is probably what the Lawyers told everyone. The alternative was to pick another school.

 

According to the Tuoy's they got $14k each (including Michael) plus royalties; each pocketing $70k. Oher says they got about $2.5mil total with him getting nothing. This is the lawsuit.

 

The Tuoys confirmed that Oher is still under conservatorship (Why?) giving them control over Oher's finances. According to Tuoy's the trouble began in 2022, which coincidentally is when Michael got married. They volunteered to end the Conservatorship.

 

If the Tuoy's were in control, that probably means that Oher's $16mil NFL  earnings is probably intact, and will be released to his control now.  If the Conservatorship was in name only, Oher might be broke as many are surmising.

 

 

 

 

[DrDawkinstein]

After reading Touhy's statements I was inclined to believe him. However, a couple of minor things dont add up.

 

1. As others pointed out, they totally could have legally adopted him.

 

2. His statement that none of them made any money from the movie, and all they got was half of the author's payment ($14k each, or about $60k total). I find it nearly impossible to believe that the Touhy's being good business people just handed over all the rights to their story to the movie studio. That movie was up for Movie of the Year, won Oscars for other things, was a big hit... and it all just lined some studio exec's pocket? And they were ok with that? I'm sure a lot went to Sandra Bullock and maybe some other actors, but still... Just giving away your story seems idiotic.

 

My conclusion after studying all the evidence presented by both sides: I dont care at all. Start the season. Go Bills!!

 

 

Edited August 15, 2023 by DrDawkinstein

[unbillievable]

19 minutes ago, Mr. WEO said:

 

Certainly I don't think that.  It just seemed strange to me that after all these years, a guy who has signed 4 different contracts with 3 different team, signed multiple book deals, etc would suddenly wonder where the film money went from years ago.  Now the family is claiming he didn't just "find this out"...

 

More to come i guess...

I don't believe that Oher just found out.

 

I think the betrayal comes from an expectation that the Conservatorship would eventually lead to full adoption; A placeholder.

That would explain why it remained active all this time. It was a symbol of his inclusion in the family even if it was never exercised. All indications are that Oher never lost control of his personal finances.

[EasternOHBillsFan]

13 hours ago, unbillievable said:

 

From what I read, He doesn't just sign random papers. There has to be a hearing of some kind where professionals are involved, a doctor and judge usually, with proof of an inability for an adult to handle their responsibilities.

 

Life isn't like the Little Mermaid movie.

Hence the word "SUPPOSEDLY", Squidward.

[RunTheBall]

1 hour ago, Ya Digg? said:

So you need more information but have no problem completely throwing him under the bus? Sounds like you are contradicting yourself there

With the limited information available, my initial impression is he is looking for more cash. As more information becomes available, that is subject to change. 

 

[Mr. WEO]

53 minutes ago, unbillievable said:

I don't believe that Oher just found out.

 

I think the betrayal comes from an expectation that the Conservatorship would eventually lead to full adoption; A placeholder.

That would explain why it remained active all this time. It was a symbol of his inclusion in the family even if it was never exercised. All indications are that Oher never lost control of his personal finances.

 

The family is saying he knew this for some time.

[hondo in seattle]

1 hour ago, SoTier said:

 

I'm not sure if you are being sarcastic or if you are naieve about human nature.   Financial success doesn't necessarily mean a person has "morals and values".  In fact, many successful businessmen have built their success by exploiting their employees or ruining their competitors, and numerous very wealthy people have been convicted of fraud, embezzlement, etc for a relatively small amount of money. 

 

 

Sadly, I'm not surprised at all.  I think too many fans don't see NFL players as people but as Madden game pieces.  There's a lot of resentment, too, that successful NFLers make a lot of money over their careers, at least some of which is based on racism from some posters.

 

 

 

I have real issues with Sean Touhey's statement above.  It's simply untrue that they couldn't adopt Oher over the age of 18 in Tennessee: Adult Adoption in Tennessee.   All it would require would be Oher's consent.   Adoption would not have given the Touheys control of Oher's finances but it would give Oher legal rights to the Touhey estate if Sean or his wife died.   The conservatorship enabled the Touhey's to control Oher's fiances and profit from it indefinitely.

 

 

The conservatorship is still in effect, so the Touhey's still have control over some of his finances.  I imagine that this will all come out in the court case.

 

 

Neither sarcastic nor naive.  I don't know the Tuohy's personally, but I know people who do. 

 

You don't need to educate me about businessmen - I know many.  To be more specific, I know a lot of successful Taco Bell franchisees.  And they're like everyone else.  Some are principled and good-hearted.  Some aren't.  From what I've heard even before the movie came out, the Tuohy's are among the good ones.  

 

Sean Tuohy's story makes sense to me: The studio bought the rights to The Blind Side (Michael Lewis) from the author, not the Tuohy's, so the family didn't make a lot of money from the movie.  Sean's story is consistent with his reputation, and I think it's the most believable explanation in the media so far. 

 

You can disagree if you want but try to do it in a civil manner without the name-calling.  Thanks.  

 

[Just Jack]

 

[blitzboy54]

21 hours ago, mrags said:

I mean, Oher received a home with a roof over his head. Not inside a slum with a crackhead 

mother and no father. He was guided into having an NFL career and made millions from it. 
 

im not saying he doesn’t have a gripe. Just seems kind of petty to complain about it now. The guy had a successful career in the NFL and made millions thanks to that family. Without them it doesn’t happen. He probably blew all his money and has no other options at this point. 

Almost nothing you said here is right. He was the number one offensive lineman prospect in the country. A 5 star recruit. The family had nothing to do with that. If they misrepresented themselves they are in the wrong. Maybe they didn't but this "he should just be grateful" stuff is bunk. 

Edited August 15, 2023 by blitzboy54

[jwhit34]

Blindside II - Can they get Jack Nicholson to play the father and channel his best Col. Jessup when he takes the stand in the civil suit trial? Sandra Bullock can play Leann again, I am thinking Charles Barkley as Michael Oher. 

[Miyagi-Do Karate]

Sad that Oher went down this path. Pretty clear to me he was given some bad advice, and may now alienate people that care about him. 

[Motorin']

4 hours ago, aristocrat said:

does he not have control of his finances? Or did someone tell him they probably made millions and he doesn’t realize they didn’t? 

 

He's claiming they told him they were adopting him and instead the papers they had him sign gave ownership of his life rights to the family, which they then sold for the making of the film. 

 

Fraud and misrepresentation void contracts. The family either defrauded him or they didn't. And he's either owed back payment or he's not.

 

It's a legal question. 

 

 

 

[mrags]

1 hour ago, blitzboy54 said:

Almost nothing you said here is right. He was the number one offensive lineman prospect in the country. A 5 star recruit. The family had nothing to do with that. If they misrepresented themselves they are in the wrong. Maybe they didn't but this "he should just be grateful" stuff is bunk. 

“Oher was named Division II (2A) Lineman of the Year in 2003, and First-team Tennessee All-State.[3][5] Scout.comrated Oher a five-star recruit and the No. 5 offensive lineman prospect in the country.[6]Before that season and for his prior 20 months at Briarcrest, Oher had been living with several foster families. In 2004, Leigh Anne and Sean Tuohy, a couple with a daughter and son attending Briarcrest, allowed Oher to live with them and adopted him, although Oher would later allege in 2023 that they instead tricked him into signing a document making them conservators.[2] The family began tending to his needs after becoming familiar with his difficult childhood. They also hired a tutor for him, who worked with him for 20 hours per week.[3]”

 

“Oher's initial low grades were a barrier to his acceptance to an NCAA program. He raised his 0.76 grade point average (GPA) to a 2.52 GPA by the end of his senior year so he could attend a Division I school, by enrolling in some 10-day online courses from Brigham Young University. Taking and passing the online courses allowed him to replace Ds and Fs earned in earlier school classes, such as English, with As earned via the Internet.[8] This finally raised his graduating GPA above the required minimum.[3]”

 

again for the like 20th time now. I said he had a gripe. But it’s kinda petty. The kid was homeless. I’m and out of foster homes. In and out of living with school friends. His grades wouldn’t have allowed him to do just about anything. the family accepted him into their family. They put a roof over his head. Gave him food and shelter. Provided guidance and help to get him where he is today. So yeah, even though he does have merit to what he’s saying, he absolutely should be grateful that he was given the opportunities he was because I’d that family. Without them he would not be what he is today. 

[Einstein]

This stinks of Oher wanting a Payday.

 

The Tuohy is far wealthier than Oher ever was and ever will be. Why would a family that sold their company for the equivalent of $385 MILLION dollars, need to gain a few extra million from Oher? It is nonsensical.

 

We are not talking about wealthy people. We are talking about uber rich people.

[hondo in seattle]

1 hour ago, Einstein said:

This stinks of Oher wanting a Payday.

 

The Tuohy is far wealthier than Oher ever was and ever will be. Why would a family that sold their company for the equivalent of $385 MILLION dollars, need to gain a few extra million from Oher? It is nonsensical.

 

We are not talking about wealthy people. We are talking about uber rich people.

 

I agree it's nonsensical, but I'm not convinced it's entirely about the money.  I think maybe Oher feels hurt because someone convinced him the Touhy family used him.  

 

But it's hard to know motivation unless you know Oher personally.  In any case, it's a sad situation.  Oher used to be family with the Tuohy's.  Seems that's over.  Bad for all sides.  

[BillsfaninSB]

5 hours ago, DrDawkinstein said:

After reading Touhy's statements I was inclined to believe him. However, a couple of minor things dont add up.

 

1. As others pointed out, they totally could have legally adopted him.

 

2. His statement that none of them made any money from the movie, and all they got was half of the author's payment ($14k each, or about $60k total). I find it nearly possible to believe that the Touhy's being good business people just handed over all the rights to their story to the movie studio. That movie was up for Movie of the Year, won Oscars for other things, was a big hit... and it all just lined some studio exec's pocket? And they were ok with that? I'm sure a lot went to Sandra Bullock and maybe some other actors, but still... Just giving away your story seems idiotic.

 

My conclusion after studying all the evidence presented by both sides: I dont care at all. Start the season. Go Bills!!

 

Exactly!   It wouldn’t matter if I was homeless or had 10 homes.  I wouldn’t just giveaway the rights of my story for pennies just so a large movie studio and actors can get even richer.   It doesn’t add up.

 

I’m not knowledgeable on how much authors get for movie rights but $120K seems very low for major productions. 

 

Edited August 15, 2023 by BillsfaninSB

[HIT BY SPIKES]

 

Tim McGraw was Touhy in the movie.

[Warriorspikes51]

did this inspire Brandon Shell to retire and sue his family too? 

[aristocrat]

5 hours ago, Motorin' said:

 

He's claiming they told him they were adopting him and instead the papers they had him sign gave ownership of his life rights to the family, which they then sold for the making of the film. 

 

Fraud and misrepresentation void contracts. The family either defrauded him or they didn't. And he's either owed back payment or he's not.

 

It's a legal question. 

 

 

 

well I dont think he’s claimed they’ve controlled his finances it’s just the movie money he claims he’s missing. However, the family claims he got the same share they got. He could also be upset that he thought he was getting a piece of the family business money if he was adopted. Seems like he’s getting some bad advice here unless there’s some other info 

[BillsShredder83]

14 hours ago, unbillievable said:

 

Why would the NCAA require an adoption/conservatorship to attend Ole Miss?

 

Is there a rule I'm not familiar with?

Quote

Tuohy said the conservatorship was drawn up to ensure that Oher was eligible to play football at the University of Mississippi.

Tuohy is a booster at the school, and if Oher wasn’t part of the family, there could have been potential NCAA issues sending him there, Tuohy suggested.

 

[Motorin']

14 minutes ago, aristocrat said:

well I dont think he’s claimed they’ve controlled his finances it’s just the movie money he claims he’s missing. However, the family claims he got the same share they got. He could also be upset that he thought he was getting a piece of the family business money if he was adopted. Seems like he’s getting some bad advice here unless there’s some other info 

 

So either the family is lying or he is mistaken about being swindled out of his film rights.

 

But the father is quoted today in People magazine claiming that his family never made a dime off the movie: https://people.com/blind-side-sean-tuohy-speaks-out-about-michael-oher-legal-petition-7643431

 

Oher alleges that each of the four Tuohy family members — Sean, Leigh Anne and their two children — made $250,000 outright from the movie, according to the petition, in addition to 2.5% in residuals. 

 

Sean Tuohy disputed that. “We were never offered money; we never asked for money... The last thing I needed was 40 grand from a movie,” Tuohy

added.

 

---

 

So they wrote in a book that Oher got paid along with them for the movie. But now are saying they didn't get paid at all... Which is it?

 

 

 

 

[BillsShredder83]

Id be feeling silly right about now if i was calling these people scum and "white saviors".  Dislike that term anyways, its a lose lose assumption.  So rich people have a chance to help a kid in a bad situation out, and don't, what do we call that? If they do step in, take a kid off the streets, theyre "white saviors".  Thats a really crappy label to throw around for any reason at all.

 

Even if it turns out these people took advantage of him, that label doesnt make sense when theres things like "fraudsters" and "con-artists" out there.  What good is coming from using that crappy label?  A white person should give pause before helping out someone different looking from them?  People should only adopt same race kids? What a nasty, fabricated label that is to hand out

[Bob Jones]

The plot thickens:

 

https://nypost.com/2023/08/15/michael-oher-accused-of-15m-shakedown-of-tuohy-family/
 

Story says that Oher and his reps were trying to extort $$$ from the family that enabled his prosperous life. Yikes.

[mannc]

6 hours ago, blitzboy54 said:

Almost nothing you said here is right. He was the number one offensive lineman prospect in the country. A 5 star recruit. The family had nothing to do with that. If they misrepresented themselves they are in the wrong. Maybe they didn't but this "he should just be grateful" stuff is bunk. 

Correct.  He was already a star athlete before they “took him in”.  

32 minutes ago, Motorin' said:

 

So either the family is lying or he is mistaken about being swindled out of his film rights.

 

But the father is quoted today in People magazine claiming that his family never made a dime off the movie: https://people.com/blind-side-sean-tuohy-speaks-out-about-michael-oher-legal-petition-7643431

 

Oher alleges that each of the four Tuohy family members — Sean, Leigh Anne and their two children — made $250,000 outright from the movie, according to the petition, in addition to 2.5% in residuals. 

 

Sean Tuohy disputed that. “We were never offered money; we never asked for money... The last thing I needed was 40 grand from a movie,” Tuohy

added.

 

---

 

So they wrote in a book that Oher got paid along with them for the movie. But now are saying they didn't get paid at all... Which is it?

 

 

 

 

Well it’s pretty easy to find out exactly how much money they made off the movie…our legal system is quite good at that…guess we’ll find out…

[Mr. WEO]

37 minutes ago, Motorin' said:

 

So either the family is lying or he is mistaken about being swindled out of his film rights.

 

But the father is quoted today in People magazine claiming that his family never made a dime off the movie: https://people.com/blind-side-sean-tuohy-speaks-out-about-michael-oher-legal-petition-7643431

 

Oher alleges that each of the four Tuohy family members — Sean, Leigh Anne and their two children — made $250,000 outright from the movie, according to the petition, in addition to 2.5% in residuals. 

 

Sean Tuohy disputed that. “We were never offered money; we never asked for money... The last thing I needed was 40 grand from a movie,” Tuohy

added.

 

---

 

So they wrote in a book that Oher got paid along with them for the movie. But now are saying they didn't get paid at all... Which is it?

 

 

 

 

 

 

This isn't correct.

 

They say that the author  split the book's movie rights  with them and that they then split that 5 ways.

 

 

[unbillievable]

20 minutes ago, mannc said:

Correct.  He was already a star athlete before they “took him in”. 

 

A star athlete who was flunking out of school.

 

Articles say OHER tested with a 80 IQ.

Forest Gump had a 75IQ.

 

The narrative is that he was not motivated and the tests were biased...

 

https://www.biography.com/movies-tv/the-blind-side-true-story-michael-oher

Edited August 15, 2023 by unbillievable

[dollars 2 donuts]

4 hours ago, hondo in seattle said:

 

I agree it's nonsensical, but I'm not convinced it's entirely about the money.  I think maybe Oher feels hurt because someone convinced him the Touhy family used him.  

 

But it's hard to know motivation unless you know Oher personally.  In any case, it's a sad situation.  Oher used to be family with the Tuohy's.  Seems that's over.  Bad for all sides.  

 

They stated public they still love him. 
 

 

[AlCowlingsTaxiService]

On 8/14/2023 at 5:13 PM, RobbRiddick said:

But Sandra Bullock seemed so genuine and kind

… and pretty hot