Marathon’s Former Director’s Lawsuit Against Bungie, Sony Dismissed by Court for Wrong Jurisdiction

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Christopher Barrett, who used to lead development on Bungie’s game Marathon, sued the company and Sony in December 2024, claiming he was wrongly fired. However, a Delaware judge recently dismissed the case. According to GameSpot, the dismissal was due to Barrett filing the lawsuit in the incorrect court.

In August 2024, Bungie dismissed Barrett, and Joe Ziegler, previously a director on Riot Games’ Valorant, took his place. Sony didn’t share many specifics about why Barrett was let go, but they stated it was due to “gross misconduct.” It’s important to remember that Bungie was also facing challenges at the time. Pre-orders for their new Destiny 2 expansion, The Final Shape, were lower than expected, and the studio had recently conducted layoffs.

Barrett sued Bungie and Sony, claiming he was wrongfully fired to avoid paying him $50 million in company shares he believed he earned. He sought $200 million in damages from the companies and accused them of unfairly blaming him for problems.

The judge dismissed the lawsuit because the Court of Chancery isn’t the right place to handle cases seeking only financial compensation. This court specializes in resolving disputes through solutions like injunctions or specific performance, not simply awarding money. The judge’s official order states the case was dismissed because the court lacked the authority to hear it.

The Court of Chancery can only hear specific types of cases. It has the authority to do so if at least one of the issues the plaintiff raises requires a fair, rather than strictly legal, resolution; if the plaintiff specifically asks for this type of fair resolution; or if a law specifically gives the court the power to hear the case.

The judge recently dismissed the case after previously questioning why it shouldn’t proceed, citing a lack of jurisdiction. The October order highlighted that only Sony and Bungie, the defendants, were raising jurisdictional concerns. The judge, Barrett, had previously indicated he would be willing to move the case to a higher court.

According to court rules, this court is required to dismiss a case if it doesn’t have the authority to hear it. The court must independently determine if it has that authority, as stated in the order.

Barrett could move his lawsuit to the Delaware Superior Court, which is a more suitable location for the case. However, he hasn’t indicated whether he plans to do so.

Bungie is currently working on Marathon, a new shooting game, but has been keeping details under wraps with strict confidentiality agreements during playtesting. There’s no release date yet, but it’s planned for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S. Recently, Bungie also addressed an issue where some in-game content was found to be copied from an independent artist.

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2025-12-15 17:41