{"id":241405,"date":"2026-01-28T15:36:29","date_gmt":"2026-01-28T15:36:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/evertise.net\/?p=130659"},"modified":"2026-01-28T15:36:29","modified_gmt":"2026-01-28T15:36:29","slug":"lawrence-welk-jr-son-of-late-renowned-bandleader-seeks-30-million-after-being-illegally-ousted-by-his-own-family-from-the-company-he-built","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ipsnews.net\/business\/2026\/01\/28\/lawrence-welk-jr-son-of-late-renowned-bandleader-seeks-30-million-after-being-illegally-ousted-by-his-own-family-from-the-company-he-built\/","title":{"rendered":"Lawrence Welk Jr., son of late renowned bandleader, seeks $30 million after being illegally ousted by his own family from the company he built"},"content":{"rendered":"

Plaintiff\u2019s attorney Jordan Matthews, of Holtz Matthews LLP, is available for interviews.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\"Holtz<\/p>\n

Los Angeles, Calif., Jan. 28, 2026<\/strong> – Driven by greed and ego, the son of the late renowned bandleader, Lawrence Welk, was illegally ousted as CEO and chairman of The Welk Group, an enormously profitable organization he ran for 42 years, by his own son and other family members as they seek to enrich themselves and use profits for personal gain, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday.<\/p>\n

The complaint filed by Lawrence Welk Jr. in Los Angeles County Superior Court against his son, Kevin Welk, The Welk Group, Inc., his nephew Jonathan Fredricks, and Stephen Baron, seeks to dissolve the storied company responsible for numerous Grammy Awards, including music legend Dolly Parton\u2019s 1999 album \u201cThe Grass is Blue,\u201d which won a Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album through the company\u2019s former music label, Sugar Hill Records.<\/p>\n

\u201cLike a scene from Macbeth, after Plaintiff built his son\u2019s and nephew\u2019s careers, they repaid him by stabbing him in the back, surreptitiously ousting him from the company he built, stealing his money, and manipulating the board of directors to exert undue power and control over Plaintiff, a now-85-year-old man,\u201d according to the lawsuit.<\/p>\n

Lawrence Welk, Jr. still owns 28.551% of the company\u2019s stock even after being ousted. The unbelievable move came in November 2022, when Welk\u2019s son, Kevin, and his nephew John Fredricks, called a special board meeting to change company rules that no one above the age of 74 should serve as CEO, the complaint states. Welk was 82 at the time.<\/p>\n

The sole purpose of the amendment, the complaint continues, was to remove Welk, while during the same meeting the board voted to eliminate the CEO position altogether, without a severance package. In turn, Welk lost his monthly salary of $35,303, expense account and bonus, along with his health benefits. The company\u2019s board then conveniently voted to install Fredricks as the company\u2019s new \u201cPresident,\u201d the complaint reads.<\/p>\n

Lawrence Welk, Jr., was substantially responsible for building the renowned company, The Welk Group, Inc., according to the complaint. After building Heartland Music, he joined his father, launching the enormously profitable Welk Resorts. He acquired record labels, including Vanguard Records and Sugar Hill Records, signed numerous well-established artists, including John Fogerty and Linda Ronstadt, and oversaw the release of multiple hit records, including country music legend Dolly Parton\u2019s 1999 album \u201cThe Grass is Blue.\u201d After spearheading the sale of Welk Music Group in 2015 for tens of millions of dollars to Concord Music, Welk orchestrated the sale of Welk Resorts in a blockbuster deal for nearly $430 million in 2021 to Marriott.<\/p>\n

He was an integral part of the company\u2019s success only to be unceremoniously pushed aside by his own family who have been \u201cstealing\u201d funds to line their own pockets and pay for luxurious lifestyles with Kevin Welk once spending $231,782.07 of the group\u2019s money on an Aston Martin for his own personal use, the lawsuit alleges.<\/p>\n

Specifically, the lawsuit alleges,\u201d Defendants enacted their duplicitous scheme aimed at hiding their fraudulent and criminal conduct\u201d and \u201cconspired, maliciously eliminating Plaintiff\u2019s salary, bonus, and expense account, cutting off his health benefits.\u201d The lawsuit further claims the Defendants \u201ccolluded to form a cartel, continually voting over Plaintiff\u2019s objections and against his interests\u201d and \u201ctheir aim was to hide their fraudulent and criminal conduct, shamelessly ousting the man who built their careers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two other related lawsuits by Lawrence Welk, Jr. are pending – a financial elder abuse claim and a shareholder\u2019s derivatives case – with trials set for Aug. 17 and Oct. 19, respectively.<\/p>\n

Welk Jr. seeks to liquidate the acclaimed company and is also seeking compensatory and punitive damages.<\/p>\n

“The defendants in this case have shamelessly and maliciously abused their power, ousting our client, Lawrence Welk, Jr., after he substantially built the illustrious company, The Welk Group, Inc. Our client grew the company alongside his father, renowned bandleader, Lawrence Welk, garnering multiple Grammy Awards with the family’s music business, and otherwise built a dynamic real estate and resort brand only for his son and nephew to essentially turn on him after he established their careers,\u201d said plaintiff\u2019s attorney Jordan Matthews of Holtz Matthews LLP.\u00a0 \u201cWe will not tolerate their reckless and malicious abuse of our client and intend to hold them fully accountable for their reprehensible actions, attempting to tarnish the legacy of an 85-year-old man, and a giant in the industry.\u201d<\/p>\n

MEDIA CONTACT:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Brian Skoloff<\/strong><\/p>\n

(801) 889-9075<\/strong><\/p>\n

brian@newsroompr.com<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Plaintiff\u2019s attorney Jordan Matthews, of Holtz Matthews LLP, is available for interviews. Los Angeles, Calif., Jan. 28, 2026 \u2013 Driven by greed and ego, the son of the late renowned bandleader, Lawrence Welk, was illegally ousted as CEO and chairman of The Welk Group, an enormously profitable organization he ran for 42 years, by his [\u2026] Continue Reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":271,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[718,719,390,385,391,57,144,717,20,386,723,724,387,388],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-241405","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-afp","category-ca","category-dj","category-gomedia","category-internal","category-ips","category-legal","category-maple-media","category-press-release","category-qm","category-rwa","category-rwe","category-si","category-vm"],"yoast_head":"\nLawrence Welk Jr., son of late renowned bandleader, seeks $30 million after being illegally ousted by his own family from the company he built - Business<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ipsnews.net\/business\/2026\/01\/28\/lawrence-welk-jr-son-of-late-renowned-bandleader-seeks-30-million-after-being-illegally-ousted-by-his-own-family-from-the-company-he-built\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Lawrence Welk Jr., son of late renowned bandleader, seeks $30 million after being illegally ousted by his own family from the company he built - Business\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Plaintiff\u2019s attorney Jordan Matthews, of Holtz Matthews LLP, is available for interviews. 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