A woman who says she was raped by Jay-Z and Sean “Diddy” Combs when she was 13 can proceed anonymously, for now, in her lawsuit against the rap moguls.
Judge Analisa Torres made the written ruling on Thursday and also chastised the lawyer representing Jay-Z for what she described as his combative motions and “inflammatory language” against the plaintiff's lawyer, calling them inappropriate.
The Manhattan jurist said the woman can proceed anonymously at this early stage of the litigation, but she may be required to reveal her identity at a later date, if the case proceeds.
That would allow defence lawyers to collect facts necessary to prepare for trial. Torres also cited “substantial interest” from the public.
Combs remains jailed in New York awaiting a criminal trial on federal sex trafficking charges.
He also faces a wave of sexual assault lawsuits, many of which were filed by the plaintiff's lawyer, Tony Buzbee, a Texas lawyer who says his firm represents over 150 people, both men and women, who allege sexual abuse and exploitation by Combs.
The lawsuits allege many individuals were abused at parties in New York, California and Florida after receiving drug-laced drinks.
Combs’ lawyers have dismissed Buzbee’s lawsuits as “shameless publicity stunts, designed to extract payments from celebrities who fear having lies spread about them, just as lies have been spread about Mr. Combs”.
Jay-Z has said in a statement that Buzbee is trying to blackmail him to settle the Alabama woman's allegations.
Buzbee said in an email that his firm does not comment on court rulings.
The woman who identifies herself as “Jane Doe”, says she was raped at 13 by Jay-Z and Combs at an after-party for the MTV Music Awards.
Alex Spiro, a lawyer for Jay-Z, asked the judge to dismiss the entertainer from the woman's lawsuit and he requested a hearing on the case for the day after he made his requests in writing on December 18.
Citing an interview the plaintiff did on NBC-TV, Spiro wrote that the broadcast revealed “glaring inconsistencies and outright impossibilities” in the plaintiff's story.
The woman has admitted inconsistencies in her story.
Torres wrote in her order that Spiro, who has been on the case less than three weeks, has submitted a “litany of letters and motions attempting to impugn the character of Plaintiff's lawyer, many of them expounding on the purported ‘urgency’ of this case”.
Referring to Jay-Z by his legal last name, the judge added: “Carter’s lawyer’s relentless filing of combative motions containing inflammatory language and ad hominem attacks is inappropriate, a waste of judicial resources, and a tactic unlikely to benefit his client. The Court will not fast-track the judicial process merely because counsel demands it.”
Comment has been sought from Spiro.
