Blindsided: Who's extorting who in the Michael Oher scandal?

Following the claims by Michael Oher he was used by the Tuohy family for financial gain, the Tuohys fought back, filing a claim in December that Oher extorted them.

The Tuohys claim Oher demanded a payout of $15 million or he would go public with his accusations, according to reporting by CBS News.

The files allege that Oher: "was no longer making significant amount of money as a professional athlete, Mr. Oher became increasingly estranged from the Tuohys," before, "demanding money through texts and emails".

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The Michael Oher story is complicated and confusing, read on to get a better understanding of what has occurred so far.

Michael Oher shot to fame whilst playing college football at Ole Miss where his performances saw him garner interest from the NFL, eventually getting drafted in the first round by the Baltimore Ravens. That same year, the hit film ‘The Blind Side’ was released, showcasing Oher’s tough childhood and how the Tuohy family took him in and adopted him.

In The Blind Side, Oher was portrayed as almost helpless, struggling with school and barely understanding what football was. By all reports, this a strange interpretation of his high school life as he had been scouted by D1 schools before ever meeting the Tuohys.

Oher has now filed a grievance with a Tennesse court stating the Tuohys never formally adopted Oher, instead getting him to sign a conservatorship which gave Leigh Anne Tuohy and Sean Tuohy control over Oher’s finances.

Per a report by Michael A. Fletcher for ESPN, the court document is 14 pages long and alleges Oher was tricked into signing the conservatorship believing it was no different to an adoption at the time.

The filling alleges Oher, “consented (to signing the conservatorship) on the basis that doing so would make him a member of the Tuohy family, in fact provided him no familial relationship with the Tuohys."

A conservatorship gives the conservators control over someone who is not in the right state of mind or is unable to manage their finances and other legal choices. In short, the Tuohys made Oher sign a document giving them a degree of legal control over his life, three months after he turned 18.

As part of the court document, Oher is alleging the Tuohys used their powers as conservators to secure huge payments from the film about Oher’s life, The Blind Side. This amounted to $250,000 per family member plus 2.5% of the film's "defined net proceeds." Oher himself alleges he received no payment for the film about his life.

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Michael Oher wrote about this conservatorship in his own memoir, Beat the Odds, "They explained to me that it means pretty much the exact same thing as 'adoptive parents,' but that the laws were just written in a way that took my age into account.”

Sean Tuohy spoke to the Daily Memphian about the allegations where he denied receiving any money from The Blind Side and that, "We're devastated. It's upsetting to think we would make money off any of our children. But we're going to love Michael at 37 just like we loved him at 16."

Despite the portrayal in the film, Oher and the Tuohys have had a fractured relationship for some time as he felt he was inaccurately portrayed in The Blind Side. Oher’s lawyer, J. Gerard Stranch IV, states, "Mike's relationship with the Tuohy family started to decline when he discovered that he was portrayed in the movie as unintelligent,"

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