ZA/UM companion and Disco Elysium govt producer Kaur Kender has withdrawn a lawsuit in opposition to the corporate’s majority shareholder and CEO, in response to GamesIndustry.biz (opens in new tab). The transfer comes amid an ongoing wrestle (opens in new tab) between founding members of the studio and its present management, with core members of the developer/artwork collective claiming ZA/UM’s present CEO, Ilmar Kompus, usurped his place by way of monetary malfeasance. Either side of that withdrawn lawsuit, Kender and Kompus, are claiming victory, whereas a type of ousted founding builders informed PC Gamer that their struggle is way from over.
To recap, Helen Hindpere, Aleksander Rostov, and Robert Kurvitz had been credited as author, artist, and lead designer, respectively, on Disco Elysium, and had been founding members of the artist collective-turned-game-developer. The setting grew out of the pal group’s tabletop campaigns, and the primary business work printed within the setting was Kurvitz’ 2013 novel, Sacred and Horrible Air. All three had left the corporate by the tip of 2021.
These three, in addition to Martin Luiga (opens in new tab), who’s credited as an editor on Disco Elysium and appears to have parted methods earlier in its growth, allege that they had been compelled out (opens in new tab) of the studio by investor Ilmar Kompus, who’s credited below “Company, Finance, Authorized, and Accounting” on the sport. The 4 declare that Kompus, who’s at the moment ZA/UM’s CEO, used the corporate’s personal cash (€4.8 million) to purchase himself a majority share in it, permitting him to find out the studio’s future.
Ilmar Kompus, in the meantime, has alleged “verbal abuse,” “gender discrimination,” and “makes an attempt to illegally promote ZA/UM mental property” on the a part of Kurvitz and Rostov. Kompus claims that the pair had been fired on these grounds and denies any monetary wrongdoing.
Estonian outlet Eesti Ekspress (opens in new tab) (customers could encounter a paywall) experiences that Kompus “paid again” €4.8 million to ZA/UM in November. The outlet says that the explanation offered for the transaction was that the €4.8 million “was obtained on the premise of a void transaction.” Eesti Ekspress factors out that Kompus “controls each side” of that void transaction.
The allegation in opposition to Kompus is that he offered the corporate its personal property after which used these illegitimate proceeds to buy his majority stake. By now transferring €4.8 million to the corporate to repay it for a “void transaction,” the meant message appears to be that he did not use firm cash to purchase his shares. However why did he have the €4.8 million within the first place?
Kender had sued Kompus in Estonian court docket based mostly on the monetary malfeasance allegations, however has withdrawn his lawsuit. When reached for remark, Kender acknowledged that “Kaur Kender’s (his firm, Chromed Investing OÜ) lawsuit in opposition to the proprietor of Zaum Studio OÜ proved to achieve success,” earlier than offering a timeline of the lawsuit (printed in full after the article.) In keeping with this timeline, Kender lodged his go well with on October 25, after which Kompus’ non-public firm, OÜ Tütreke, paid €4 million to ZA/UM on November 4, and €800,000 on November 11, overlaying the funds in query.
Kender concluded, “To the extent that Ilmar Kompus returned the illegally taken 4,800,000 euros, Kaur Kender achieved the aim of the lawsuit filed, and the court docket proceedings on this case will likely be terminated.”
Kompus, in the meantime, informed GamesIndustry.biz that “[Kender and his lawyers’] resolution affirms there was no foundation for his or her accusations and that I’ve acted appropriately and responsibly, as underscored by the company data I offered.”
Robert Kurvitz informed PC Gamer that his social gathering is conscious of “Kompus’s view that the cash taken from ZA/UM Studio was ‘repaid’.” Kurvitz says he is seen a “partial financial institution assertion allegedly confirming such compensation,” however stays unclear on the “supply and authorized nature of this compensation, and the additional use of the allegedly repaid funds.”
“Additional, any ‘compensation’ of the corporate’s cash which was used to illegally purchase a majority stake doesn’t erase the principle consequence of the preliminary injustice—which is that Kompus stays the bulk proprietor, a place that he was solely in a position to attain by utilizing the corporate’s cash as his personal,” stated Kurvitz. “In mild of this, there was no materials change in our state of affairs, and we proceed to think about our authorized choices. We can’t touch upon the choices taken by Kaur Kender with regard to his declare, to which we had been by no means a celebration.”
The way forward for what we at PC Gamer proceed to treat as among the best videogames ever made (opens in new tab) continues to be murky. Kompus has paid again ZA/UM a sum of €4.8 million, sustaining that this trade was completely authorized and above-board. Kender, in his assertion, continues to consult with the €4.8 million as “illegally taken” from the corporate, however has dropped the lawsuit, seemingly glad with its return.
Kurvitz and Rostov, in the meantime, argue that regardless of the motion of that cash and its ultimate vacation spot, it was, at one level, used to illegally seize the event home born of their creative collective. There’s additionally the remaining determine of Tõnis Haavel, one other investor in ZA/UM who Kurvitz and Rostov allege aided Kompus in buying his majority stake, however doesn’t appear to be as lively a participant on this stage of the proceedings. We’ll proceed to observe and report on the authorized battle over possession of Disco Elysium because it develops.
Kaur Kender’s assertion on the timeline of his lawsuit
- Kaur Kender’s lawsuit in opposition to the proprietor of ZA/UM was profitable
- Kaur Kender’s (his firm, Chromed Investing OÜ) lawsuit in opposition to the proprietor of Zaum Studio OÜ proved to achieve success.
- On October 25, 2022, Kaur Kender’s firm filed a lawsuit in opposition to OÜ Tütreke (Ilmar Kompus firm), during which was demanded the seizure of Zaum Studio OÜ’s share belonging to OÜ Tütreke.
- On October 29, 2022, the Estonian court docket secured the motion and shares belonging to OÜ Tütreke had been seized. [Editor’s note: covered here by Eesti Ekspress (opens in new tab) behind a paywall]
- On October 31, 2022, the order securing the motion was forwarded to Nasdaq and the Estonian Enterprise Register.
- On November 1, 2022, Kaur Kender despatched a letter in English to contacts, together with Ilmar Kompus and Tõnis Haavel, stating that the minority shareholders demand the convening of a basic assembly.
- On November 4, 2022, Ilmar Kompus’ firm OÜ Tütreke paid a complete of 4 million euros to Zaum Studios OÜ in two funds.
- On November 11, 2022, Ilmar Kompus’ firm OÜ Tütreke paid 800,000 euros to ZA/UM Studios OÜ.
- Ilmar Kompus referred within the corresponding cost orders: “Return of the quantities obtained on the premise of the contract on 12.2021-01.2022 as a result of nullity of the contract”.
- To the extent that Ilmar Kompus returned the illegally taken 4,800,000 euros, Kaur Kender achieved the aim of the lawsuit filed, and the court docket proceedings on this case will likely be terminated.
