'DWTS' Pros Maks & Val Chmerkovskiy Settle Court Battle With Ex-Dance Studio Employee
By Ryan Naumann on October 23, 2019 at 6:51 AM EDT
“Dancing With The Stars” pros Maksim & Val Chmerkovskiy have reached a deal to drop their lawsuit against a former employee.
According to court documents obtained by The Blast, DWM Dance Studios, owned by Maks & Val, have dismissed all claims against Klajdi Kasemi.
Maksim & Val Chmerkovskiy were represented by celebrity attorney Matthew Blit.
Blit tells The Blast, "My clients were very pleased with the outcome of the case. DWM was successful in enforcing its agreement as the Court Order reads as follows: "the Court shall issue an injunction against Defendant Kesemi from soliciting and/or performing dance related services to its current or former customers.." Additionally, Mr. Kesemi's non-compete and non-solicit agreement were extended for an additional year past the date of the Court's Order, with additional Court ordered sanctions to be imposed for any future breach. Mr. Kesemi learned the hard way that agreements we make in life must be honored."
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Back in September, DWM Dance Studios sued Kasemi, accusing him of stealing their dance studio clients.
The Chmerkovskiy brothers co-founded and operate DWM Dance Studios, along with fellow “Dancing With the Stars” pro Tony Dovolani. The studio is located in New York.
In the lawsuit, the company said Kasemi started working as an instructor with them in 2015. Per their deal, Kasemi was prohibited from giving dance lesson within a 10-miles of the studio. He was also not allowed to solicit clients away from DWM Dance Studios.
Maks & Val accused him of breaking both rules and wanted him to pay up.
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They claimed his employment was terminated on December 22, 2018. He allegedly then started teaching at a competition studio nearby. Maks & Val also accused him of soliciting multiple students from DWM.
The suit read, “Upon information and belief, Kasemi has used DWM's trade secrets in violation of his position of trust on behalf of DWM; has misappropriated these secrets for his own usage; and solicited DWM customers.”
The lawsuit sought unspecified damages and attorney fees.
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Last year, Maksim and Val filed a similar lawsuit against another ex-employee, Gregory Hightower. They accused him of stealing their clients and breaching his contract. He denied the allegations. The case is still ongoing.