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Influencer Haliey Welch, widely known as the viral “Hawk Tuah” girl, is now at the center of a fresh legal battle after a crypto law firm moved to add her as a defendant in an expanding federal class-action lawsuit tied to last year’s catastrophic $HAWK meme coin collapse.
According to a new filing in the Eastern District of New York, Welch and her manager, Johnnie Forster, along with their company, 16 Minutes LLC, allegedly played a key role in promoting a token that lawyers say was “designed to crash within minutes,” allowing insiders to unload tokens during the launch frenzy and walk away with substantial profits.
Complaint Says ‘Hawk Tuah’ Personality Was Central to HAWK Token Collapse
Burwick Law, the firm leading the lawsuit, previously left Welch out of the case. It now argues that new evidence shows she earned up to $325,000 for her involvement and became a “critical component” of a coordinated promotional pipeline that drew in retail buyers who trusted her public persona.
The updated complaint claims Welch agreed to a $125,000 upfront payment, with another $200,000 tied to promotional milestones, after signing a “Meme Token Creation and Monetization Agreement” with Memetic Labs five months before launch.
The filing says these payments elevated her from a passive sponsor to an essential part of the token’s marketing funnel, even as the project allegedly made promises it could not technically deliver.
Welch, who rose to internet fame in 2024 thanks to a viral street interview and later launched the Talk Tuah podcast, had promoted HAWK as a cultural token that would integrate with her show and offer subscription-style perks.
The lawsuit argues that none of these features were ever technically feasible.
The Solana-based token had a spectacular yet short-lived debut. It skyrocketed to a $490 million market cap in under 15 minutes before plunging 93% almost immediately.
According to the complaint, this collapse was not the result of mismanagement but the outcome of a system engineered for a rapid extraction of value. Blockchain forensics tie insider wallets to other alleged rug pulls, including LIBRA, M3M3, AIAI, and the TRUMP snipe.
Can Welch Escape the Shadow of HAWK Now That New Fraud Allegations Have Surfaced?
Those named in the fraud allegations include Memetic Labs, OverHere Limited, Clinton So, Alex “Doc Hollywood” Schultz, the Tuah Foundation, and several connected wallet clusters.
Welch is not accused of securities violations or false advertising, but the suit claims she benefited financially from a scheme that targeted inexperienced traders.
The lawsuit draws comparisons to other high-profile meme token implosions. LIBRA, promoted by Argentine President Javier Milei, collapsed hours after launch and is now at the center of multiple investigations, even though the country’s anti-corruption watchdog later cleared Milei of wrongdoing.
Earlier this year, TRUMP, a Solana token featuring Donald Trump’s branding, also tanked days after launch. Burwick Law alleges all these projects shared similar on-chain patterns and insider trading behaviors.
Welch’s relationship to HAWK has been turbulent since the collapse. At the time, she issued a public apology, saying she was “fully cooperating” with lawyers representing harmed investors.
Her legal team told outlets that she acted only as a paid promoter and had no knowledge of the technical or financial operations behind the project.
In later interviews, Welch said federal agents questioned her and briefly seized her phone during their review.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ultimately cleared her, and the influencer said the ordeal left her regretful that her involvement misled fans.
The renewed push to add her as a defendant marks the most significant turn since investors first filed suit in December 2024, reporting more than $151,000 in losses from the crash.
