A legal disagreement has taken shape involving current and former principals at Omelet, the “boutique Los Angeles creative shop” which lists AT&T, HBO, Microsoft, and others on its client list.
Omelet, which recently expanded its creative team with the hire of Leo Burnett/W+K/CP+B/Deutsch LA veteran Shannon McGlothin, is suing its former president and co-founder/chief content officer Steven Amato. Or being sued by him, depending on who you ask.
Two things are clear:
- Amato, who wrote copy for Deutsch and served as ACD at TBWA for three years before launching Omelet more than 10 years ago, left the agency last Spring to launch his own LA-based shop called Contend (home page here). Mike Wallen, a one-time freelance CD and producer for Adult Swim, Fox Studios and other parties, replaced him in the chief content role back in October.
- Amato and current Omelet Chairman/CEO/one-time hedge fund manager Don Kurz, who joined the agency in 2004, have a running disagreement.
Everything else looks like a classic case of he said/he said.
A source tells us that Amato is suing Kurz and his former employer for money owed to him, while Kurz says the equation is reversed: he and Omelet are suing Amato. For what? That’s not yet clear.
Here’s the quote from Kurz himself:
“Omelet is suing Contend and Steven Amato. We’re looking forward to a successful resolution.”
We were unable to reach Amato for comment today. But, in the absence of a settlement between the aggrieved parties, the story will almost certainly play out in Los Angeles County court in the months to come.