For some time, I’ve been following Spencer Baumgarten’s bizarre legal battle against ICM, the Hollywood talent agency that merged with CAA earlier this summer. Baumgarten, of course, was the former co-head of ICM’s motion picture department, who was fired in 2019 after being accused of defecating on the floor of a gender-neutral office bathroom. As my Puck partner Matt Belloni wrote a few months ago, there’s a lot going on here: Baumgarten, who was reportedly underperforming his giant salary, alleges that ICM’s human resources chief, Cindy Ballard, spread the poop rumor to force his exit. Indeed, the shit hit the fan just as ICM was courting private equity investors, fueling speculation that the Baumgarten drama was as much about money as anything else.

Nevertheless, that alleged bowel movement is at the center of Baumgarten’s ongoing, three-year lawsuit against ICM, Ballard, and former agency boss Chris Silbermann. Among his claims is a rare instance of alleged self-defamation, meaning he has been compelled to repeat the turd rumor when hunting for new jobs, thus defaming himself. After all, any prospective employer is likely going to ask him to address his termination. (Most states don’t recognize self-defamation as a viable tort, but California is among the handful that do. A 2020 appellate decision made that clear.)