Get All Access for $5/mo

$1.35 Billion Mega Millions Winner Sues Daughter's Mother for Revealing His Identity The man's winnings were the fourth largest in U.S. lottery history.

By Emily Rella

Sounds like trouble in paradise for one Mega Millions winner who is suing the mother of his daughter for revealing his identity — and his winnings — to his family.

An unidentified man in Maine, who won the $1.35 billion Mega Millions in January, chose to collect his earnings as a $723,564,144 lump sum in cash.

According to the lawsuit, the only person who knew about his earnings was his daughter's mother who signed an NDA with the lottery winner to "promote the safety and security of [the winner] and their daughter to avoid the irreparable harm of allowing the media or the public in general to discover … [his] identity, physical location, and assets."

Related: Man Wins $22M Lottery But Won't Tell His Children, Parents

The NDA was signed on February 8, 2023, and was set to be in effect until June 1, 2032 — when the pair's daughter turns 18.

The document also stated that if the woman did disclose the man's winnings to anyone, she had 24 hours to let him know, in writing.

According to the new lawsuit, the mystery man claims that the woman broke the NDA via "one or more telephone communications" with his father and stepmother back in September. It was also noted that the man's sister is now aware of his winnings.

Related: Father-Son Duo to Serve Time for $20 Million Lottery Scheme

The man is seeking retribution in the form of "all reasonable attorney fees, expenses, and court costs incurred in the prosecution of this lawsuit" and a payment of "no less than $100,000" for each disclosure his daughter's mother made about his identity.

The man's $1.35 billion jackpot was the fourth largest in the history of the U.S. lottery system.

Emily Rella

Entrepreneur Staff

Senior News Writer

Emily Rella is a Senior News Writer at Entrepreneur.com. Previously, she was an editor at Verizon Media. Her coverage spans features, business, lifestyle, tech, entertainment, and lifestyle. She is a 2015 graduate of Boston College and a Ridgefield, CT native. Find her on Twitter at @EmilyKRella.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Editor's Pick

Starting a Business

I Left the Corporate World to Start a Chicken Coop Business — Here Are 3 Valuable Lessons I Learned Along the Way

Board meetings were traded for barnyards as a thriving new venture hatched.

Business News

'Passing By Wide Margins': Elon Musk Celebrates His 'Guaranteed Win' of the Highest Pay Package in U.S. Corporate History

Musk's Tesla pay package is almost 140 times higher than the annual pay of other high-performing CEOs.

Business News

Joey Chestnut Is Going From Nathan's to Netflix for a Competition 15 Years in the Making

Chestnut was banned from this year's Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest due to a "rival" contract. Now, he'll compete in a Netflix special instead.

Marketing

Are Your Business's Local Listings Accurate and Up-to-Date? Here Are the Consequences You Could Face If Not.

Why accurate local listings are crucial for business success — and how to avoid the pitfalls of outdated information.

Money & Finance

Day Traders Often Ignore This One Topic At Their Peril

Boring things — like taxes — can sometimes be highly profitable.

Growing a Business

He Immigrated to the U.S. and Got a Job at McDonald's — Then His Aversion to Being 'Too Comfortable' Led to a Fast-Growing Company That's Hard to Miss

Voyo Popovic launched his moving and storage company in 2018 — and he's been innovating in the industry ever since.