Chip and Joanna Gaines have had a tough go-around with “haters” in the past six months. First they faced the wrath of a Buzzfeed writer who blatantly questioned their character on the premise that they attend a church whose pastor has preached against gay marriage.
Of course, they’re always in the news for something like “Why JoJo refuses to upgrade her wedding ring,” or claims that they’re leaving Waco and Fixer Upper.
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Now they’re facing a whole new kind of drama.
Last week, Chip’s former friends, business partners and cofounders of the Magnolia Real Estate Company, filed a $1 million lawsuit against the Fixer Upper star.
John L. Lewis and Richard L. Clark have allegedly accused Chip of buying them out of their shares of the company for $2,500 each in May of 2013—just days before the HGTV hit series premiered.
The partners claim that Chip didn’t tell them that the HGTV renovation show would be nationally televised, and “the show prominently featured the ‘Magnolia’ brand name before the sale.”
Chip took to Twitter on Friday with none other than a Bible verse as reports of the suit circulated the media:
“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”
He followed up with a different tweet, believed to be a direct statement about his so-called “friends.”
“Fyi: Ive had the same cell # 15 years.. same email for 20 yrs,” the “Fixer Upper star”, 42, wrote. “No one called or emailed? 4 years later ‘friends’ reach out via lawsuit.. humm.”
The three friends founded the company in 2007 with just one real estate agent. According to the lawsuit, Magnolia currently has 93 agents in several offices across Texas.
Based on the amount of shade coming from Chip’s tweet, I think it’s safe to assume the trio hasn’t been close in some time.
Chip and Joanna’s attorney told Fox News, “We are confident that these claims will be found to be meritless, and it is disappointing to see people try to take advantage of the hard work and success of Chip and Joanna Gaines.”
We will update this story as more information becomes available.
