The bar in Florida owned Coco Gauff’s father gained a lot of attention when clips were shown of friends and family following the 15-year-old’s run at Wimbledon, but apparently the establishment is the subject of a legal dispute within the Gauff family as well.
According to court documents obtained by The Daily Mail, Coco Gauff’s father, Corey, is being sued by his own mother over the ownership of the Paradise Sports Lounge in Delray Beach. The woman, Dr. Deborah Wright, claims she invested roughly $500,000 of her retirement money into opening the bar and has been pushed out by her son, who she says forged documents without her consent to make himself the manager. Wright is seeking “damages which exceed $15,000” and sole ownership of the bar.
Wright says Corey Gauff phased her out of day-to-day operations of the Paradise Sports Lounge even though she was supposed to take part in the hiring process and operational decisions. A Facebook post from last year showed potential interested employees being told to contact Wright and one other person about job openings. The complaint also mentions how Gauff is rarely at the bar, as he travels a lot with Coco’s tennis career.
Gauff has filed multiple motions to dismiss the case, calling the allegations from his mother “contradictory” and saying she has provided no proof that he forged any documents.
Coco Gauff became the feel-good story of the summer after she defeated Venus Williams and made a deep run at Wimbledon, and the people watching the matches at her father’s bar had some incredible reactions.
