Mullenweg Says Lawsuits Could End WordPress

Matt Mullenweg commented that the conflict he initiated could eventually lead to the closure of WordPress.org. He claimed that the only way to end the conflict was for WP Engine to drop their lawsuit, which would have the effect of enabling Mullenweg to resume his campaign to drive WP Engine out of business.

A WordPress user who over the past twelve years had published nearly 600 free WooCommerce tutorials and 500 newsletters tweeted a plea to Matt Mullenweg to reconsider the instability he has caused, saying that it was causing instability.

He tweeted:

“Dear
@photomatt,

We love WordPress. It’s not just software; it’s a livelihood for thousands of developers, freelancers, and small agencies. We don’t have millions like you do—every change, every piece of WPdrama costs us time, clients, and money.

We need stability. We need to focus on building, supporting, and growing businesses, not worrying about the next big upheaval or leadership conflict. Let’s move toward clarity, collaboration, and transparency.

Please consider pausing the current direction to listen. The community wants a strong future for WordPress—one where everyone, from volunteer contributors to top-level sponsors, can work together without fear of losing what we’ve built.

We don’t ask this lightly. Our livelihoods depend on it.

Thank you.”

Mullenweg Says Lawsuits Could Force Closure Of WordPress

Matt Mullenweg insisted that the conflict can only end if WP Engine drops their lawsuit which was filed in response to  the conflict he initiated.

Mullenweg insisted that WP Engine must drop their lawsuit:

“Everything I’m doing is to defend the long term health of WordPress.

The lawsuits can only be dropped by WPE, as they initiated them.”

Mullenweg followed up with the following tweet:

“The lawsuits will go years and could potentially bankrupt me or force the closure of WordPress.org. It also takes a huge amount of time — there is no ‘lawyers work on that.’”

Mullenweg subsequently tweeted that the lawsuits could go on for up to two more years:

“The cases will stretch into 26 and 27, so it’s hard to say what the environment will be or the court will order.”

Mullenweg’s Response Was Not Reassuring

Mullenweg’s post, asserting that WP Engine’s defensive lawsuit could potentially shutter WordPress.org and drag on for multiple years, was not well-received. One travel blogger even asked rhetorically whether they should migrate to another CMS.

Those looking for a sign that the conflict that Mullenweg initiated could come to an end sooner than later were disappointed.  Mullenweg appears to be suggesting that only WP Engine can end the conflict by dropping their defensive lawsuit and allowing Mullenweg to resume his attacks designed to drive them out of business. A federal judge ruled against Matt Mullenweg by granting WP Engine’s request for a preliminary injunction to block his attacks against WP Engine.

The judge explicitly did not agree with Mullenweg’s lawyers:

“Defendants’ arguments in opposition do not compel a different conclusion.

Defendants’ argument that the interference WPEngine alleges consists of acts they had a right to take fares no better.

…The conduct described at length above – including the termination of WPEngine’s access to WordPress, the interference with the ACF plugin, and the additional burdens imposed on WPEngine’s customers, such as the sign-in pledge – demonstrates that WPEngine has a significant interest in obtaining preliminary injunctive relief.

Defendants’ arguments in opposition do not establish that they will suffer any damage that overrides WPEngine’s interest in obtaining relief. …Requiring Defendants to restore access on those terms while this action proceeds imposes a minimal burden.”

Response On WP Drama Reddit Community Is Largely Negative

A discussion on Reddit about Matt’s remarks about WordPress.org closing was largely negative.

Typical posts:

“Probably the most shocking thing for me at this point is that no one seems to able to talk some sense into Matt.”

“I’m personally moving my sites to either Drupal or ClassicPress just haven’t decided yet.”

“I cannot imagine a worse fate than to be consumed by multiple multiyear, multimillion dollar lawsuits. To say nothing of suffocating his baby, and alienating his fans, admirers, and loyal customers. Matt was in a position to just relax and enjoy his wealth and fame, but chose another path.

He also had the option of slowly putting the squeeze on perceived “freeloaders” like WPEngine and watch them squirm without recourse.”

“As a Drupal focused agency – this is just delicious.

As someone who cares about the sustainability of open source efforts and caring about all of my peers who make a living off of WP. It’s heart breaking to watch Matt threaten BILLIONS of dollars of livelihoods like this.”

No End In Sight?

The fact that an entire subreddit was created to contain all the discussions about the conflict that Mullenweg initiated shows how concerned the WordPress community is about what Mullenweg has done. It’s a major topic of conversation and it’s largely not favorable to Mullenweg.

Featured Image by Shutterstock/Studio Romantic