Kesha Has To Pay Dr. Luke $373,671 In Defamation Damages
Lukasz “Dr. Luke” Gottwald has won a legal battle against Kesha. Not-A-Real-Doctor Luke is going after Kesha for a variety of things related to her rape accusations against him. Well, a judge has ruled that Kesha did defame Dr. Luke when she accused him of raping Katy Perry, which Katy Perry denied, in text messages to Lady Gaga, and now she has to fork over more than $300,000 to him.
Kesha and Dr. Luke have had various legal battles since she accused him in 2014 of drugging and sexually assaulting her. Accusations which Dr. Luke denies. And during her legal battle against him, she’s faced many obstacles. Her lawsuit against Dr. Luke and Sony was dismissed and she had to drop a California lawsuit against him. She was also blocked from getting out of her contract with Sony.
And now, People says that a judge has ruled in favor of Dr. Luke in his defamation case against her. The judge ruled yesterday that the text to Gaga was clearly defamatory. The judge ruled in favor of Dr. Luke after deciding that he’s not a public figure, which was part of Kesha’s defense. The ruling said:
“Though Gottwald has sought publicity for his label, his music, and his artists–none of which are the subject of the defamation here–he never injected himself into the public debate about sexual assault or abuse of artists in the entertainment industry…. The only reason Gottwald has any public connection to the issues raised in this lawsuit is because they were raised in this lawsuit. That cannot convert him into a limited public figure.”
This judge thinks that one of the biggest pop producers in the world is not a public figure? Makes sense. This means that now prosecutors won’t have to prove that Kesha had “actual malice” when talking about Katy’s alleged rape:
“Because Gottwald is not a public figure for purposes of determining the the constitutional protection afforded to statements by Kesha that he drugged, raped and sexually assaulted her, the actual malice standard is inapplicable… Perry unequivocally testified that Gottwald did not [rape her]. In response, Kesha has not raised a triable issue. There is no evidence whatsoever that Gottwald raped Katy Perry, or that Katy Perry, whose sworn testimony is unrefuted, must not be believed.”
Kesha must pay $373,671.88 of interest on a $1.3 million royalty payment she made in August 2017, which was super late. Kesha’s legal team told People:
“Judge Schecter issued rulings today on motions for summary judgment in the Dr. Luke litigation. We disagree with the Court’s rulings. We plan to immediately appeal.”
And Dr. Luke’s team took a victory lap:
“Kesha abandoned her meritless case against Dr. Luke more than three years ago. The only remaining lawsuit is Dr. Luke’s case against Kesha for defamation and breach of contract. Dr. Luke is pursuing this lawsuit to seek recovery for the serious harm Kesha’s false accusations of rape have caused Dr. Luke, his family and his business…. Today’s important decision by the Court in Dr. Luke’s lawsuit brings him closer to the justice that he seeks… First, the Court has now ruled that Kesha made a false and defamatory accusation about Dr. Luke when she baselessly claimed that he raped Katy Perry. Second, the Court rejected Kesha’s attempts to invoke legal technicalities to avoid responsibility for her statements. And third, the Court also correctly held that Kesha breached her contract with Dr. Luke’s company…. Dr. Luke looks forward to the trial of his case where he will prove that Kesha’s other false statements about him were equally false and defamatory.”
Meanwhile Harvey Weinstein is reading this news and thinking to himself, “Hey! He keeps winning! Someone get that guy’s lawyer on my legal team!”
Pic: Wenn.com