YouTuber Karl Jobst loses years-long legal battle against Billy Mitchell

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In the end, after lengthy legal battles spanning many years, it was the Mitchell v Jobst case that ultimately found its way to a courtroom. Following extensive discussions over several days, a decision was made, resulting in a loss for Karl Jobst.

Karl Jobst, predominantly known for his YouTube content on speedrunning, has created multiple videos accusing Billy Mitchell of cheating during his world record attempts and raising questions about his character. Consequently, Mitchell filed a lawsuit in response.

A lawsuit alleging defamation was brought against Jobst, with the claim being that Mitchell falsely accused YouTuber Apollo Legend of causing him to commit suicide.

In my enthusiastic perspective, Apollo, the iconic gaming figure, shared a heartfelt farewell video prior to his departure, and interestingly enough, the court in Queensland referenced this video during their proceedings. Remarkably, Apollo omitted any reference to Billy Mitchell in his last public broadcast.

Based on Jobst’s statement that Mitchell appeared happy about Apollo Legend’s potential demise in one of the videos, and this evidence, the court decided to rule in Mitchell’s favor. As a result, Jobst now owes Mitchell hundreds of thousands of dollars as punitive damages.

Karl Jobst forced to pay punitive damages to Billy Mitchell

In various videos, Karl Jobst labeled Billy Mitchell as a “swindler” and presented numerous accusations concerning his personality. Remarks about Mitchell’s suspected cheating in video games were scarcely discussed during the court proceedings.

In the official court verdict, Jobst’s conduct was criticized directly by the judge:

In the context of this lawsuit, Mr. Jobst’s actions and further remarks about it online have been troublesome aspects of his behavior. It appears that he views himself as a champion or knight fighting this case against Mr. Mitchell, according to him.

It was evident that Mr. Jobst aimed to be the hero who defeated the Mitchell dragon, but unfortunately, his confidence in the strength of his spear was misplaced. In the battle, it shattered into pieces.

In the end, it was decided that Jobst’s allegations were harmful, resulting in him being obliged to pay significant compensatory penalties.

Additionally, the speedrunning YouTube content creator edited the video that led to Billy Mitchell’s lawsuit by removing any reference to Apollo Legend and subsequently retracting the statement in a subsequent upload. This video, named ‘The Greatest Feat In Video Game History’, made no further mention of Mitchell except for a brief segment at the end, while the majority of the video had no bearing on the legal case at hand.

The video didn’t deny the accusations at all; it merely corrected the claim about Apollo Legend paying Mr. Mitchell a significant amount of money. Additionally, Mr. Jobst did not offer any sort of apology to Mr. Mitchell. Instead, he apologized to his audience for making an incorrect statement in the problematic video.

It was determined that Jobst’s retracted claim against Mitchell was unfounded, as he falsely alleged that Mitchell had not made an effort to clarify the situation. Consequently, this retraction did not benefit Jobst but instead harmed him, leading to increased financial obligations and additional penalties for aggravated damages.

Karl Jobst had to pay a total of $340,446.58 AUD (which includes $300,000 for non-economic losses and $50,000 in aggravated damages) due to the defamatory statements he made in his original video that was posted nearly 4 years ago. Also, since then, an interest rate has been added to the damages amount, totaling $40,446.58.

Currently, the YouTuber is indebted to Billy Mitchell a sum of approximately 390,446.58 AUD ($245k USD), a figure that might encompass costs related to legal expenses stemming from the lawsuit.

Unfortunately, the judge deemed Billy as a reliable witness who presented compelling testimony. Consequently, it became an insurmountable obstacle, leaving me no choice but to accept defeat. As a result, I’ll need to explore my available options moving forward, which I understand may disappoint some of you. I apologize for any disappointment this outcome may bring.

— Karl Jobst (@karljobstgaming) April 1, 2025

In simpler terms, Jobst acknowledged the verdict by saying, “I’ve been defeated. The judge deemed Billy a trustworthy witness and accepted his entire testimony. After that, there was no way for me to turn things around. Now, I will need to weigh my available choices.

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2025-04-01 20:18