Chess.com Reinstates Hans Niemann, Settles Suit

Allegations of cheating at St. Louis' Sinquefield Cup triggered the now-resolved lawsuit

By Sarah Fenske

Aug 28, 2023 at 12:11 pm

Via Flickr / Frans Peeters

Magnus Carlsen has settled a lawsuit filed by rival — and accused chess cheater — Hans Niemann.

The litigation that broke out over allegations of cheating at St. Louis' Sinquefield Cup has been resolved — and with the settlement, accused cheater Hans Niemann has been reinstated at Chess.com.

The settlement comes two months after U.S. District Court Judge Audrey Fleissig dismissed most of Niemann's claims in a 31-page order. Niemann's lawyers had vowed to refile in state court.

Chess wizard Magnus Carlsen, who is a part owner of Chess.com, had accused Niemann of cheating after Niemann's upset victory over him at the Sinquefield Cup. Rumors quickly spread that Niemann might have used anal beads to receive the correct answers, a charge Elon Musk helped bring to widespread attention, tweeting, "Talent hits a target no one else can hit, genius hits a target no one can see (cause it’s in ur butt)." (Always eloquent, that Elon.)

Niemann filed his $100 million suit alleging not only defamation on Carlsen's part but also anti-trust violations after Chess.com barred him from its platform. And while Judge Fleissig wasn't impressed by Niemann's arguments, his lawyers' determination to fight on may have led the parties to the settlement table.

Carlsen, Niemann and Chess.com said this in a joint statement this morning: “We are pleased to report that we have reached an agreement with Hans Niemann to put our differences behind us and move forward together without further litigation. At this time, Hans has been fully reinstated to Chess.com, and we look forward to his participation in our events. We would also like to reaffirm that we stand by the findings in our October 2022 public report regarding Hans, including that we found no determinative evidence that he has cheated in any in-person games. We all love chess and appreciate all of the passionate fans and community members who allow us to do what we do.”

Nima Mohebbi and Jamie Wine, who are partners at Latham & Watkins and represented Chess.com, said in a statement, “For the benefit of the chess community, our clients are happy to move past all the litigation.”

Banning Niemann wasn't Chess.com's only high-profile move this year. Earlier this month, the platform said it would ban the St. Louis Chess Club over its failure to look into sexual misconduct allegations. Chess.com said it would no longer broadcast or cover events at the club, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Hans Niemann was sort of accused of cheating at the Sinquefield Cup in St. Louis.

St. Louis Judge Dismisses $100M Suit Over Chess Cheating Allegations: Anal beads get no mention in Judge Audrey Fleissig's 31-page order

Player at St. Louis Chess Cup Accused of Using Anal Beads To Cheat: The scandal began when well known chess grandmaster Magnus Carlsen withdrew from the Sinquefield Cup

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Sarah Fenske

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