John Deere dealership group Hutson Inc. is currently in a legal battle with its former CEO Josh Waggener. At the heart of the lawsuit is a breach of Waggener’s employee agreement. Waggener voluntarily resigned his position with Hutson as of July 14, 2024.

According to the lawsuit, in the lead up to Waggener’s resignation, the Board began to question whether Waggener was loyally and faithfully performing the duties of his position as required by his employment agreement so much so that the Board was assessing its options to terminate Waggener’s employment at the time of his resignation.

According to the suit, Waggener resigned from his position due to “certain physical ailments.” On the day he received his separation payment, according to the suit, Waggener announced on social media that he had accepted a job as the president and chief executive officer of W&B Service Co. in Texas. That announcement prompted the dealership to more closely examine his pre-resignation conduct. The allegations also include a number of financial matters.

We’ll have more details on the case in the October Ag Equipment Intelligence Newsletter.

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