Evolution is now closer than it has ever been to bringing its legal saga against a now partially unknown entity or entities to a grinding halt, but there are still more things that the company would need to find out first. In the latest installment in the ongoing legal saga, the company representing the report’s authors, law firm Calcagni & Kanefsky LLP (C-K), were finally and definitely ordered by courts in New Jersey to reveal the names of the authors of the report now identified as private intelligence firm Black Cube, based in Israel.
Evolution gets the names of the report’s authors, not the people who ordered the report
Instead of obtaining vindication, however, Evolution will now have to further wait to possibly access the names of the people who requested the report, as Black Cube may only have been hired to compile the report in the first place. The infamous report landed Evolution in a lot of hot trouble, first by giving investors a scare and wiping out $3bn in value when it was shared with the media in 2021.
The report alleged that Evolution had provided its products and games with illegal and offshore gambling websites that had, in turn, targeted jurisdictions where the supplier already had contracts and licenses with regulated operators. Following a flurry of investigations, Evolution was cleared by major regulators, including the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement, clearing the path for a legal crusade against the anonymous parties that had caused the company its financial pain.
While the unmasking of Black Cube as the author of the report is important, there are still quite a few question marks that need to be answered. Calcagni & Kanefsky LLP has explained that the identity of the entity or entities who ordered the report in the first place is still unknown – i.e., Black Cube was not acting out of its own but rather rendering services for a client.
However, rumors have been swirling that it could be a major Evolution competitor who stood to gain from the company’s trouble with the law.
Calcagni & Kanefsky are not off the hook in Evolution’s book of scores to settle
Calcagni & Kanefsky LLP has said that it will comply with the court order in full and provide further information on the identities of the people responsible for the report once they have been furnished by Black Cube:
"C-K has asked Black Cube to provide that information and will supplement its interrogatories when Black Cube does so. C-K is aware of the identities of the below Black Cube employees and/or representatives who were involved with or participated in the investigation on which the Report is based."
Black Cube will also have to divulge the names of employees who worked on the report, or any other entity involved with its preparation. Although the full list of names is not yet clear, some of the people involved on Black Cube’s behalf include Alex Gorelik, Head of Investigations, Romy Martin, General Counsel, and Dr. Avi Yanus, Director.
To top it all off, Evolution is also moving against Calcagni & Kanefsky LLP, accusing the firm of violations in the discovery process and prejudicial delay. While Evolution is closer than ever to finding out the identity of every person behind the report, it will have to wait even more time before it can finally meet face-to-face with its accuser.
