by Jeroslyn JoVonn
November 4, 2025
Charles Oakley has been ordered to pay more than $642,000 to Madison Square Garden as a sanction in his ongoing legal dispute.
New York Knicks All-Star Charles Oakley has been ordered to pay over $642,000 in attorney fees and costs to Madison Square Garden in their ongoing legal battle stemming from his 2017 ejection from a game.
On Oct. 31, the former Knicks star, who played for the team from 1988 to 1998, was hit with the hefty order as a sanction for losing five years of text messages that could have served as evidence in his lawsuit over the 2017 ejection, Reuters reports. U.S. Magistrate Judge Robyn Tarnofsky set the amount lower than Madison Square Garden’s request—its attorneys at King & Spalding had sought over $1.5 million in fees, but the judge reduced the figure.
Oakley, a 19-year NBA veteran and longtime fan favorite, played as a power forward for the Knicks and has had a long-running feud with James Dolan, owner of Madison Square Garden and the Knicks. He sued Madison Square Garden after being ejected from his courtside seat during a Feb. 8, 2017, game between the Knicks and Los Angeles Clippers.
In his most recent amended complaint from April 2024, Oakley alleges assault and battery against the stadium and its affiliated entities, which have denied any wrongdoing.
In August 2024, Oakley’s attorneys stated that he had lost all text messages sent or received between Feb. 8, 2017, and February 2022, claiming the messages were lost when he upgraded to a new phone after his previous device broke. However, a federal judge noted in July that Oakley had upgraded his phone before without losing any texts.
“The court concludes that Oakley’s loss of his text messages cannot be credibly explained as involving anything other than bad faith,” U.S. Circuit Judge Richard Sullivan said in the July order.
Following Tarnofsky’s recent ruling, Oakley must either pay the fees or await the outcome of his planned appeal. His attorney, Valdi Licul, a partner at Wigdor representing Oakley, stated that they “disagree that MSG is entitled to any recovery and will promptly seek to appeal.”
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