Legally Doomed YouTuber: Jeremy Hales Mocked on ‘Legally Leslie’ Podcast for Frivolous Lawsuits

Investigative Journalists Richard Luthmann and Michael Volpe Unload on Hales’s Legal Theatrics, Call It “Cancel Culture Clown Show”

By Richard Luthmann with Michael Volpe and Leslie Ferderigos

YouTube bigot Jeremy Hales, known for his channel What The Hales?, is now becoming more infamous for what the courts may soon call What the Hell Are These Lawsuits?

‘Blessed to Be a Defendant’

On May 6, 2025, LawTuber Leslie Ferderigos hosted investigative journalists Richard Luthmann and Michael Volpe on Legally Leslie.

The trio dissected Hales’s bizarre legal crusade—a sprawling, multi-defendant lawsuit that Luthmann, a named defendant, described as “frivolous,” “malicious,” and “an attempt to gag the free press.”

“I’ve been blessed to be a defendant,” Luthmann joked, noting Hales’s team is using Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act (FDUTPA) and the federal Lanham Act—not defamation—as the basis for their suit.

Why?

Because, as Luthmann explained, “They know they can’t win a defamation claim as a public figure.”

Volpe agreed.

“He’s a social media mogul,” he said, noting Hales has over 750,000 YouTube followers. “He’s got a megaphone. He doesn’t need a lawsuit. He needs thicker skin.”

“Jeremy Hales is a moron, *Litigation Privilege,” Luthmann said, referring to the legal rule that statements made in the course of judicial proceedings are privileged and immune from defamation liability. See Jackson v. BellSouth Telecommunications.

Legally Doomed YouTuber: The Cancel Culture RICO Circus

Ferderigos was stunned by what she heard.

“Sounds like a RICO enterprise,” she said, comparing Hales’s orbit to a multi-tiered mafia operation.

Luthmann agreed. He described Hales at the top of a “sycophantic pyramid,” where smaller YouTubers like “Jay Hip”—whom Luthmann mockingly called a “pear-headed” wannabe—act as digital foot soldiers for bigger influencers like Megan Fox and “That Umbrella Guy.”

Once a fellow journalist, Fox is now described as “the enforcer.” According to Volpe, she pushes Hales’s narrative and unleashes her following to target journalists who dare question it.

 It’s called “Astroturfing.”

“These people don’t know us. They’re just told to hate us,” Luthmann said.

Ferderigos herself experienced this digital swarm.

“I posted a podcast with no followers yet,” she said. “Two days later, I got hate messages. I hadn’t even heard of Jeremy Hales!”

Legally Doomed YouTuber: A Shoe Salesman with a Vendetta

In what may be the biggest punchline in this courtroom comedy, Luthmann revealed the supposed damage Hales is suing over.

“He amended the complaint to include his company, Elephant Shoes LLC,” Luthmann said. “The NAIC code shows it’s an online shoe reseller. He’s Al f***ing Bundy suing people because he can’t sell shoes!”

The hosts laughed in disbelief.

“We hurt his elephant shoe business?” Volpe mocked. “What’s next? He sues because someone called his storage locker junk worthless?”

Volpe also shared police reports and videos of Hales confronting rival treasure hunters, insulting neighbors, and filming children—allegedly to provoke protective order violations.

One clip had Hales shouting homophobic slurs.

“This is who he is,” Volpe said. “He escalates. He provokes. And then he plays victim.”

“He’s a BIGOTED SCUMBAG. *Litigation Privilege,” Luthmann said.

Legally Doomed YouTuber: The SLAPP Heard ‘Round Florida

The lawsuit may be Hales’s downfall. According to Luthmann, he plans to respond with Florida’s updated anti-SLAPP statute, designed to protect journalists and whistleblowers from retaliatory lawsuits.

“He’s suing me for the practice of journalism,” Luthmann said. “We reached out to the ADL about an antisemitic slur he made. That’s protected speech. And now he wants damages?”

Volpe was incredulous.

“They called Bruce Matzkin ‘Deuce Foeskin’—a grotesque slur against a Jewish attorney. A rabbi confirmed it’s antisemitic. And now they’re attacking the rabbi too?”

Ferderigos added that attempts to reach Fox and others for comment were ignored.

“They read the messages. They respond. Then claim bias.”

Legally Doomed YouTuber: Dumpster Diving for Damages

As the episode wrapped, the trio agreed: Jeremy Hales has weaponized litigation against journalists and critics.

“There’s no RICO,” Ferderigos said. “No business model. No coordination. Just a YouTuber filing scattershot lawsuits.”

Volpe likened the filings to “shotgun pleadings”—a term the judge had already used to describe the vague and incoherent legal arguments.

“His first lawsuit got partially tossed,” Volpe said. “The second one added Luthmann and will probably collapse too.”

Luthmann concluded with a challenge.

“Let’s have a public debate. Bring your YouTubers. Bring your facts. If they even have any.”