What does Deion Sanders’ raise mean for him and Colorado?
Deion Sanders’ $10M salary signals major investment from Colorado—but how will the school fund rising athletic costs?
- A law firm has voluntarily dropped its lawsuit against Shilo Sanders over a claim of $164,000 in unpaid legal bills.
- The lawsuit was dismissed “without prejudice,” meaning the firm could refile its claims against Sanders in the future.
- This case was separate from Sanders’ ongoing bankruptcy proceedings, which involve an $11.89 million debt to a former security guard.
The law firm that sued Shilo Sanders last year over $164,000 in unpaid bills has decided to drop its lawsuit against the former Colorado football player but offered no public explanation for why.
The firm of Barnes & Thornburg LLP sued Sanders last November, claiming the son of Colorado football coach Deion Sanders owed the firm $164,285 but refused to pay it despite receiving invoices for it. The firm asked a federal court in Dallas for a judgment against Shilo Sanders for that amount, plus attorneys‘ fees.
But that lawsuit has been terminated, according to court filings obtained by USA TODAY Sports. The firm recently called off the lawsuit “voluntarily” and “without prejudice,” which means the firm could refile its claims against Sanders again if desired. If Sanders had paid the bills to resolve the case with a settlement, typically the case would have been dismissed “with prejudice,” meaning the firm would not be allowed to refile the same lawsuit against him.
An attorney for the firm didn’t return a request for comment about why the lawsuit was dismissed voluntarily.
Shilo Sanders’ bankruptcy proceedings remain pending
This lawsuit was separate from Sanders’ bankruptcy proceedings, which remain pending after he filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in October 2023 with more than $11 million in debt — almost all of it owed to John Darjean, a former security guard at Sanders’ former school in Dallas.
Darjean sued Sanders in 2016, claiming Sanders assaulted him and severely injured him when he tried to confiscate his phone at school in 2015, when Shilo was 15. Darjean won a $11.89 million default judgment against him in 2022 after Sanders failed to show up for the trial.
Then when Darjean moved to collect on that debt from Sanders, Sanders filed for bankruptcy to halt the debt collection efforts and to try to make the debt go away so he can get a “fresh start,” according to his attorneys.
Law firm provided services related to Shilo Sanders’ bankruptcy
The law firm that sued him last November said it provided Sanders services “in connection with his personal injury matter and his bankruptcy proceedings.”
Before the firm called off the lawsuit, federal judge Sidney Fitzwater last month asked the firm to “demonstrate good cause” for failing to effect service on Sanders, meaning explain why it hadn’t properly notified Sanders he was being sued. The firm instead dropped the lawsuit.
Darjean is fighting Sanders’ efforts to discharge the debt and is scheduled to go to trial on the matter Aug. 31. Sanders, 26, said he acted in self-defense. He was waived by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last year after finishing his final college season in 2024 as a graduate student.
Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: [email protected]
