Less than a day after being named in a lawsuit accusing him of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl in 2000, Jay-Z is demanding that his accuser be required to reveal her identity.
The music icon, whose legal team swiftly responded to the allegations, argues that the plaintiff cannot hide behind a pseudonym while publicly tarnishing his reputation.
The lawsuit, filed by attorney Tony Buzbee on behalf of a Jane Doe plaintiff, alleges that Jay-Z and Sean “Diddy” Combs drugged and assaulted the then-teenager at an afterparty following the MTV Video Music Awards. Jay-Z, however, in a statement Sunday night, labeled the accusations “calculated” and part of what his attorneys describe as an “extortionate” scheme by Buzbee, who has filed numerous lawsuits against Diddy and other celebrities.
“Mr. Carter should not have to defend himself in the brightest of spotlights against an accuser who hides in complete darkness,” Jay-Z’s attorney Alex Spiro wrote in a motion filed Monday. The legal team is asking the court to either dismiss the case entirely or compel the plaintiff to litigate under her real name, arguing that anonymity in such cases is an “exception, not the rule.”
Spiro claims the lawsuit is the latest move in a broader effort to extract settlements from prominent figures by tying them to Diddy’s ongoing legal troubles. He notes that Jay-Z recently filed a lawsuit in California accusing Buzbee of extortion after the attorney allegedly issued threats involving “wildly false” allegations unless payment was made.
