The legal fight between Jay-Z, whose real name is Shawn Carter, and attorney Tony Buzbee is heating up.
via: Houston Chronicle
Buzbee is currently representing over 100 clients in lawsuits against Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs for alleged sexual abuse. He is also the subject of two federal lawsuits recently filed by his former clients accusing him of fraud and other transgressions, which he claims are backed by Roc Nation in an effort to intimidate him and his firm to not pursue cases against Combs. The allegations come weeks after Jay-Z, whose real name is Shawn Carter, said his lawyer received a demand letter from Buzbee in relation to the lawsuits involving Combs.
“The Defendants overstepped, got sloppy, and stupidly got caught in their illegal scheme on tape,” Buzbee said in a statement. “We intend to cooperate with authorities to ensure all involved are prosecuted to the full extent allowed under Texas law.”
Roc Nation didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP, listed as a defendant in the suit, currently represents Jay-Z in a lawsuit against the Buzbee Law Firm, according to court documents.
In a statement to the Chronicle, a spokesperson for Quinn Emanuel said Buzbee’s “frivolous lawsuit is an attempt to distract from his other frivolous lawsuits.”
“We have no idea what he is talking about,” the statement reads.
Two former clients are accusing Buzbee of fraud and other transgressions in separate lawsuits filed last week in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. Both former clients accuse Buzbee and his firm of abuse and unethical conduct in the handling of two personal injury suits last year.
One of the lawsuits was filed by Matthew Ray Thompson who claims Buzbee’s firm intercepted monthly maintenance-and-cure payments he was owed after being injured while working on a vessel.
“In addition to misappropriating Mr. Thompson’s maintenance and cure funds that were intended to provide living expenses for he and his family, Defendants used Mr. Thompson’s benefits for their own gain,” the lawsuit reads. “Specifically, rather than giving Mr. Thompson these funds, Defendants used Venmo to parse these funds out to Mr. Thompson and his wife in small amounts as high-interest loans.”
The other lawsuit alleges Buzbee misled and financially harmed his client Adam Guidry, a former ship captain, while representing him in a personal injury case in 2020. Guidry claims Buzbee and his firm took 98% of his final disbursement and 74% of his overall settlement, according to the lawsuit.
“The Buzbee Defendants rely on Tony Buzbee’s quasi-celebrity status to lure Louisiana residents, such as Guidry, to The Buzbee Law Firm,” the suit reads. “Tony Buzbee draws attention to himself and his Firm by representing and suing celebrities, by broadcasting his wealth on social media, and, recently, by parking a WWII tank in front of his home in an affluent Houston neighborhood.”
Thompson and Guidry are represented by Mississippi-based attorney Timothy Porter, who did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Both lawsuits allege Buzbee has a pattern of harming his clients and cite previous lawsuits filed against him, including one from a former client who claims the Houston lawyer physically assaulted her.
Buzbee said he has contacted authorities about what he called the “illegal conduct” of Roc Nation and his former clients regarding the lawsuits.
“Roc Nation has been illegally soliciting individuals for several weeks to sue my law firm,” Buzbee said. “These two individuals who took the bait were promised money to bring the case. Both of these cases are utterly frivolous and will be summarily dismissed.”
Vibe reports, a Roc Nation spokesperson has replied to attorney Tony Buzbee‘s Dec. 18 lawsuit against the entertainment company, calling it a “sham” that is meant to distract from Buzbee’s own questionable practices.
“Tony Buzbee‘s baloney lawsuit against Roc Nation is nothing but another sham. It’s a pathetic attempt to distract and deflect attention. This sideshow won’t change the ultimate outcome and true justice will be served soon.”
留言