Uncle Nearest and its largest shareholder filed a lawsuit against its main creditor on Tuesday, intensifying a nearly year-long legal saga that started over loans in default and has spiraled since. Its founders also filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection the same day.
This all started when Farm Credit Mid-America, the Black-owned whiskey brand’s main creditor, filed a lawsuit against Uncle Nearest, Inc. and its husband-and-wife founders Fawn and Keith Weaver in July 2025. The Kentucky-based lender filed its suit in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, where Uncle Nearest is based. Farm Credit first claimed it was owed more than $100 million and alleged the company had been in default on its loans as early as January 2024. By February 2026, it was at risk of foreclosure.
Now, the Weavers have initiated their own suit against Farm Credit, filed in the Supreme Court of the State of New York. They allege that Farm Credit “engaged in a smear campaign against the fast-growing whiskey brand by knowingly circulating false accusations, including claims of missing inventory, financial misconduct, negative cash flow, and insolvency,” per a press release.
“According to the complaint, the lender circulated accusations of missing inventory, financial misconduct, negative cash flow, and insolvency despite possessing documentation contradicting those claims. The accusations were later repeated by national and industry media outlets,” the press release continued.
Since Farm Credit brought its suit against Uncle Nearest, a judge ordered the company go under receivership. While under court-appointed receiver Phillip G. Young Jr., there have been some fiery revelations, as reported by The New York Times. He found the company’s records before 2024 were deleted, that it struggled to make payroll, and that it hadn’t filed federal tax returns since 2018, per the Times. Young also claimed the company was losing roughly $1 million per month and had an estimated value around $100 million, a fraction of the billion-dollar valuation Weaver claimed in 2023.
“The accusations circulated about us were not only false. The bank knew they were false when they made them, and they knew those accusations would strike directly at the credibility that allowed this brand to grow against all odds in this industry,” Fawn Weaver said in the press release. She is currently starring as a Guest Shark on ABC’s “Shark Tank.”
Uncle Nearest also filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Tuesday. (Chapter 11 is all about reorganization and can be a smart move for a company in debt.) “Through the Chapter 11 proceeding and related litigation, Uncle Nearest, Inc. will pursue claims and counterclaims against its lender arising from the administration of the credit facility,” the release continued. “Operations at Nearest Green Distillery and national distribution of Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey will continue as normal during the reorganization process.”
News of Uncle Nearest’s suit against Farm Credit and filing for Chapter 11 comes a day after a judge paused the attempted sale of Uncle Nearest assets, specifically its multimillion dollar Martha’s Vineyard property.James Williams, of the Louisiana-based firm Chehardy Sherman Williams, is leading litigation on behalf of Uncle Nearest. James L. Walker, Jr. is serving as New York counsel.
The post Uncle Nearest Founders Sue Lender, Claim ‘Smear Campaign’ Amid Bankruptcy Filing appeared first on Essence.
Author: Kimberly Wilson
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