When UnitedLex this week announced the sudden departure of James Schellhase from his position as chief executive officer, it seemed a mystery, since he had just celebrated his one-year anniversary in that role and had even just been on my LawNext podcast to reflect on that year — an interview suggested by the company. Even Schellhase’s LinkedIn profile suddenly disappeared.
But the day after his departure, video was posted to the social media platform X showing a man who appears to be Schellhase being confronted by a group of four men associated with Dads Against Predators, which Wikipedia says is a vigilante group whose members pose as minors on the internet to lure men into filmed, live confrontations.
Elsewhere, a cofounder of the group posted screenshots alleged to show chats between Schellhase and someone he thought was a 15-year-old, arranging to meet.
I have no way of confirming the veracity of any of these allegations.
A source inside UnitedLex with knowledge of the situation said that Schellhase’s departure had nothing to do with his work there or any sort of corporate or employment-related malfeasance. The source said that Schellhase had been a good CEO during his tenure and that employees had been excited about the company’s future with him at the helm.