CONTENT WARNING: Mentions of domestic abuse and sexual violence
In a rare win for the producers of Love Is Blind, the courts just ruled in their favor in the case of a Season 5 contestant who spoke out against the show.
We’ve been following this court case for the last few months. Renee Roche got engaged to Carter Wall during their time in the Love Is Blind pods. She claimed he was abusive during their time together, and the producers knew it. At one point, Renee said that he threatened a camera operator but producers forced her to continue filming with him.
She filed a lawsuit against Netflix and Delirium TV, the company behind the hit dating series. She said they forced her to continue with her relationship with Carter, despite being aware of his dangerous behavior. Renee’s contract stated that she had to resolve issues via arbitration. The issue went to the Los Angeles Superior Court, and People reported all of the details of their ruling.
Love Is Blind lawsuit: Straight to arbitration
When Renee went public with her story, Delirium initiated arbitration against her. Renee only got paid $8,000 for her time on the show, but they demanded $4 million for her violating their NDA.
Renee said they were trying to “ruin her life” and tried to get the courts to deem her NDA unenforceable and illegal. She didn’t want to follow their arbitration process. Unfortunately for Renee, the Los Angeles Superior Court felt otherwise.
The judge in the case felt that Renee’s lawyers failed to demonstrate how participating in arbitration would cause her harm. The judge wants her to stick with the arbitration agreement in her contract from when she signed up for the show.
Delirium TV responds
Of course, the production company and their lawyers were foaming at the mouth over the ruling. In a press release, they slammed her for going public with her accusations. They’re sending a strong message for Love Is Blind participants, past and future.
“Arbitration is the procedure that is spelled out in the agreement Ms. Poche signed when she applied to participate in Love Is Blind,” a statement from the production company read.
It continued, “But, rather than defend against Delirium’s claims in arbitration, Ms. Poche and her lawyers chose to file a headline-grabbing Complaint in Court against Delirium and Netflix with a morass of arguments challenging the enforceability of the agreement she signed.”
Of course, Renee wasn’t the first person to go public with accusations against Love Is Blind. Another Season 5 contestant claimed she was sexually assaulted by her fiancé when filming the show.
Others have alleged they were overserved alcohol and deprived of sleep and water. Although the court sided in favor of the production company, it’s unlikely that the court of public opinion will be on their side with this one.
TELL US – WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON RENEE’S CASE? DOES THIS PARTICIPANT’S EXPERIENCE IMPACT THE WAY YOU VIEW THE SHOW?
