Tennessee judge Kathleen Gomes said Wednesday that she is ending the conservatorship agreement between former Ole Miss All-American Michael Oher and Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy, according to the Associated Press. Gomes, a Shelby County Probate Court judge, also said that she will not dismiss Oher's pending lawsuit against the Tuohy family.
Oher, whose story is depicted in the 2009 film "The Blind Side," originally filed a lawsuit in August claiming that the Tuohys never legally adopted him and lied about the familial status for profit. Oher claims that he did not see any money from the film while the Tuohys pocketed millions from the project.
According to the suit, the Tuohys did not adopt Oher in 2004, rather they instead entered him into a conservatorship and impressed upon him that it was the same process as adoption. Under a conservatorship, the Tuohys were able to enter into deals legally without Oher's consent. The conservatorship also allowed the Tuohys to take ownership of Oher's finances even though he was not a legal member of the family.
"Michael Oher discovered this lie to his chagrin and embarrassment in February of 2023, when he learned that the Conservatorship to which he consented on the basis that doing so would make him a member of the Tuohy family, in fact provided him no familial relationship with the Tuohys," the original legal filing reads.
Sean and Leigh Ann Tuohy also wrote a book about their experience with Oher. Leigh Anne toured as a motivational speaker after the film's release and frequently referred to Oher as her adopted son.
Oher grew up in Memphis, Tennessee, and attended Briarcrest Christian School where he was coached by current Auburn coach Hugh Freeze. He began living with the Tuohys around that time, and when he turned 18, the Tuohys told him they planned on adopting him.
Signing with Ole Miss out of high school, Oher earned two first-team All-SEC honors and a unanimous All-American nod as a star offensive lineman. He was selected in the first round of the 2009 NFL Draft and played for the Baltimore Ravens, Tennessee Titans and Carolina Panthers during an eight-year professional career.
