The 2023 season has been a progressive improvement for Williams with the appointment of former Mercedes Chief Strategist James Vowles after Jost Capito departed late last year. However, a lawsuit against the Grove-based team sheds light on the possible events that led to this switch.
Photo Credit: Williams Racing
According to The Times, Claudia Schwarz, a former marketing executive for Williams Racing, has filed a $100 million lawsuit against the team for allegedly causing damage to her reputation and driving her out of the company while attempting to avoid paying her out of contracts.
The former Chief executive Darren Fultz was allegedly fired by the team after a “mystery investor” in Dorilton demanded that the team’s budget be cut due to subpar on-track performance and to “get rid of all marketing suppliers”, according to Schwarz, who claims the team did this by leaking information about an alleged affair she was having, which she denies, with him to a magazine.
Jeremy Friedman, a lawyer at Downs Law Group representing Schwarz, said to the publication: “This lawsuit will bring to light what we contend are false public statements made by Dorilton and Williams about Schwarz and her company that we believe have been done in a calculated effort to avoid both contractual obligations and to put pressure on Schwarz to stay quiet and not defend herself.
“They believed that Schwarz would not fight back and defend herself, her companies and her reputation. She is fighting back.”
On the other hand, Williams has a counterclaim for $6.9 million, in which they accuse Schwarz of orchestrating a scheme to overcharge Williams over more than a year by passing work to suppliers she had ties to through her husband, Axel Ludwig.
Williams responds by claiming that Schwarz started an illicit relationship with Fultz to persuade him to authorise “inaccurate and overinflated invoices and improper credit card charges”.
They also claim that there were allegedly more than 30 instances of “improper spending” on her business credit card, including charges for stays at the Ritz-Carlton in Montreal, the Park Lane, and the Soho Grand.
The team has accused Schwarz of engaging in “unprofessional and egregious conduct on a nearly daily basis, cultivating a toxic workplace culture, and terrorising staff.” According to the report, she allegedly displayed “sociopathic” and “narcissistic” tendencies, leading to an “environment characterised by dread and blame.”
Its legal claim, according to The Times, explained the statement by adding:
According to the article, Williams was asked for a response but declined.
Uncertainty surrounds the involvement or the knowledge of former team boss Jost Capito.
