Dr. Phil's production company and a bankrupt broadcaster he co-founded must comply with discovery requests from creditors trying to dismiss Merit Street Media's increasingly contentious Chapter 11, a Texas bankruptcy judge said Thursday.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Scott W. Everett during a hearing overruled objections from Peteski Productions — which is owned by television personality Phil McGraw, better known as Dr. Phil — and Merit Street to discovery requests made by two creditors. The creditors — Trinity Broadcasting of Texas, which co-founded Merit Street with Peteski, and the Professional Bull Riders — have alleged that the Chapter 11 was filed in bad faith and without required corporate authorization.

Peteski had said the discovery requests were unnecessary and too close to an Aug. 19 hearing on critical motions in the case. Judge Everett overruled the concerns Thursday and directed the companies to respond to the requested production, which includes the personal emails and text messages of certain Merit Street and Peteski employees, including McGraw's sons, as well as engagement letters and billing records of law firm Jackson Walker LLP.

"I've considered whether the discovery is relevant and proportional to the needs of the case," Judge Everett said, overruling Merit Street and Peteski's objections. "This is an unusual case. There's a lot of allegations that are just that — just allegations," he observed.

Merit Street filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in early July listing at least $100 million in liabilities.

Merit Street was formed in 2023 as a joint venture between Christian broadcasting network Trinity and Peteski, the production company behind the long-running daytime talk show "Dr. Phil," which aired on CBS.

At Merit Street, McGraw began "Dr. Phil Primetime," a talk show that has included an interview with President Donald Trump during his 2024 presidential campaign and interviews with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

In parallel with its Chapter 11 petition, Merit Street filed an adversary action against Trinity. The lawsuit alleged that Trinity didn't live up to its obligations to give operational and financial support to the joint venture, putting it on a path to insolvency. The lawsuit is looking to undo a security interest transferred to Trinity in May 2025 in connection with a $25 million loan a Trinity affiliate gave Merit Media.

Peteski, which has agreed to front up $13.4 million in new money to Merit Street under a debtor-in-possession loan, conditioned further funding beyond a $4.1 million interim draw approved in July on obtaining a favorable judgment in the adversary action against Trinity, according to Merit Street's motion for DIP approval.

Trinity in mid-July asked Judge Everett to either dismiss the bankruptcy, convert it to a Chapter 7 liquidation or appoint a Chapter 11 trustee to oversee the company, alleging that the petition was filed without proper corporate authority. It also alleged that it was filed in bad faith and would benefit McGraw over creditors.

The Professional Bull Riders in early August filed a joinder to Trinity's motion to dismiss the case.

The bull riding league, headquartered in Texas, asserted a $181.4 million breach of contract claim against Merit Street and alleged the bankruptcy was filed to dodge the litigation. The joinder alleged that the bankruptcy would allow McGraw to jump-start Envoy Media Co., a a similar company he formed in the days before Merit Street filed for Chapter 11.

Judge Everett was scheduled to consider the motions to dismiss on Aug. 19.

PBR on Aug. 7 filed an emergency motion to compel production of documents by both Merit Street and Peteski, saying it believed that certain Merit Street employees were using their personal emails and texts to do work on behalf of Envoy. It also requested billing records and retention letters for Jackson Walker, the law firm representing Peteski as the DIP lender. PBR said in court filings that the firm had represented Merit Street in arbitration proceedings with PBR shortly before the bankruptcy.

Trinity filed a joinder to the motion, alleging that the debtor had produced few of its requested documents ahead of depositions.

Attorneys for Merit Street and Peteski argued on Thursday that the production requests were unnecessary and would be too burdensome for them to produce, given the quick timeline in the case. They argued that they had already complied with much of the discovery requests and agreed to produce the requested emails and texts for some of the employees.

Judge Everett overruled the objections.

"I think that is in some sense an issue of their [the debtors'] own making," he said in reference to the tight time frame and discovery in the case, later elaborating that it was an "unorthodox request" for the debtors to seek a ruling in preference claim lawsuit so soon after a bankruptcy was filed to get further DIP funding.

Merit Street is scheduled on Aug. 19 to ask Judge Everett to grant a second interim order approving the DIP to allow it to borrow more money to fund the case, which Trinity and PBR have pushed back on over concerns about the necessity of the funds.

Attorneys for Trinity and PBR told the court Thursday that in light of the new wave of discovery, they may not be prepared to argue their motions to dismiss on Aug. 19.

Judge Everett encouraged the parties to discuss how they will proceed next week and added that whether Merit Street had corporate authority to file for bankruptcy will be a gating issue that should be answered early in the case. He said Fifth Circuit case laws give bankruptcy judges little wiggle room to allow a case to proceed if it was filed without required authority.

"That seems to be a unique threshold issue that needs attention for everybody's benefit," Judge Everett commented.

Merit Street Media is represented by Jeri Leigh Miller, Stephen Hessler, Patrick Venter and James W. Ducayet of Sidley Austin LLP.

Peteski Productions, Inc. is represented by Carl C. Butzer, Charles L. Babcock, Vienna F. Anaya, Bruce J. Ruzinsky, William T. Farmer, Matthew D. Cavenaugh and Emily Meraia of Jackson Walker LLP.

Professional Bull Riders, LLC is represented by Jason M. Rudd and Scott D. Lawrence of Wick Phillips Gould & Martin LLP and Jennifer R. Hoover, Andrew D. Kinsey, Nicholas J. Secco, Alyssa A. Moscarino and Abbey Walsh of Benesch Friedlander Coplan & Aronoff LLP

Trinity is represented by Holland N. O'Neil, Robert Slovak, Steven C. Lockhart, Mark C. Moore, Stephanie L. McPhail, Rajiv Dharnidharka and Nora J. McGuffey of Foley & Lardner LLP.

The bankruptcy case is in re: Merit Street Media Inc., case number 8:25-bk-80156, in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Texas.

The adversary case is Merit Street Media Inc. v. Trinity Broadcasting of Texas Inc. et al., case number 8:25-bk-08006, in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Texas.