Dr. Phil McGraw sued by broadcast partner for fraud, breach of contract

Trinity Broadcasting offered Dr. Phil's Merit TV on broadcast and cable TV platforms.

Trinity Broadcasting has filed a federal lawsuit accusing Dr. Phil McGraw and his former media venture, Merit Street Media, of fraud and breach of contract.

The complaint, filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Texas, alleges McGraw misled the Christian broadcaster under the terms of a $500 million, ten-year agreement in which he failed to deliver on a promise that he would reboot his daytime talk show and create hundreds of new episodes each year.

The litigation comes as Merit Street is also pursuing its own breach of contract claim against Trinity Broadcasting in bankruptcy court. The case has drawn heightened scrutiny because McGraw conditioned a loan to his company on Merit Street winning its lawsuit against the broadcaster, which the court described as anything but “routine.”