Dr. Luke’s multi-million dollar defamation case against Kesha could serve as a major precedent against inexperienced, up-and-coming stars, PR firms, and lawyers.
In a major victory for Dr. Luke, New York Supreme Court Justice Jennifer Schecter has authorized an expansion of the producer’s defamation lawsuit against Kesha – real name Kesha Rose Serbert.
Judge Schecter will allow Lukas ‘Dr. Luke’ Gottwald and his legal team to present documents alleging that she planned a smear campaign against the famed producer.
But, what’s this case all about?
In 2014, Kesha filed a civil lawsuit in California. Filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, the singer made several damning allegations against Dr. Luke.
She accused Gottwald of sexually, physically, and emotionally abusing her during their decade-long professional relationship.
With the help of her PR firm, Sunshine Sachs, and Kesha’s former lawyer, Mark Geragos, the singer made her accusations known in the media.
To pursue her music career, for example, Gottwald allegedly forced the singer to drop out of high school in Nashville. Then, in 2005, he forced the singer to sign with his music production company, Kemosabe Entertainment.
Working with the famed producer, Kesha claimed he bragged about having sex with drunk girls. She also stated that Gottwald confessed to pushing his pregnant wife to have an abortion.
Finally, she accused Dr. Luke of forcing her to consume illegal drugs and gave her a date rape drug.
The lawsuit read,
“Ms. Sebert took the pills and woke up the following afternoon, naked in Dr. Luke’s bed, sore and sick, with no memory of how she got there. Ms. Sebert immediately called her mother and made a ‘fresh complaint,’ telling her that she was naked in Dr. Luke’s hotel room, she didn’t know where the clothes were, that Dr. Luke had raped her, and that she needed to go to the emergency room.”
Kesha accused him of sexual assault and battery, sexual harassment, gender violence, civil harassment, and unfair business. She added that Gottwald intentionally and negligently inflicted emotional distress on her.
In April 2017, a judge dismissed her claims.
Judge Shirley Kornreich found,
“Her claims of insults about her value as an artist, her looks, and her weight are insufficient to constitute ‘extreme, outrageous conduct intolerable in civil society’.”
Dr. Luke fights back.
Gottwald has repeatedly denied the accusations.
Kesha had initially signed a six-album deal with Gottwald in 2005, but now demanded changes, including the deal’s nullification. The singer had wanted to get out of her agreements with Gottwald and his company.
According to his legal team, Kesha filed “a bogus complaint” and started “a PR media blitz designed to create negative public pressure on Gottwald to give into Kesha’s contract demands.”
They may have a point.
Once the civil lawsuit went public, Gottwald’s legal team revealed several e-mails from media outlets. The singer’s managers had offered “a TMZ exclusive” to achieve maximum negative publicity against Gottwald. The e-mails allege the goal was to “help extricate Client K from her currently professional relationship with Person L.”
In addition, 3 years before filing the lawsuit against Gottwald, Kesha gave the following testimony in a deposition.
“Dr. Luke never made sexual advances against me.”
The singer and her legal team later spun the statement, stating she had only made it “under threat.”
Then, Kesha filed multiple requests to change or cancel her contract with Sony. The singer claimed she would “suffer irreparable harm” from the bitter legal fight.
When a judge wouldn’t grant the motion, she amended the lawsuit. Now, per Kesha, Sony knew about Dr. Luke’s abuse, but chose to ignore it.
A court found that Sony had allowed her to continue working without Gottwald. Yet, her lawyer, Mark Geragos, spun the move, claiming Sony had only “set her up to fail.”
Once a judge denied her motion to cancel her deal with Sony, Kesha dropped the civil lawsuit altogether.
So, according to Dr. Luke, he – not Kesha – suffered irreparable harm to his reputation.
In his estimated $40 million+ lawsuit against Kesha, Gottwald revealed more evidence against the singer. Another e-mail chain between her two managers – Jack Rovner and Ken Levitan – stated,
“Let’s battle in the press. Take down his business.”
In another e-mail, Rovner added, “[I’m] all for public execution.”
Then, Kesha accused Dr. Luke of drugging and raping her close friend, Katy Perry. Perry had allegedly sent her text messages confirming the sexual assault.
Kesha added that other female artists – including Pink, Avril Lavigne, Lady Gaga and Kelly Clarkson – had submitted sworn statements against Gottwald.
There’s just one problem.
Dr. Luke and his legal team recently revealed an unsealed deposition from Katy Perry.
Under oath, she denied ever having a sexual or romantic relationship with Gottwald. She also said she never sent Kesha any messages. Lady Gaga also gave a similar testimony.
So, what’s next?
Judge Jennifer Schecter’s ruling allows Dr. Luke to hold Kesha and her PR firm accountable for their statements.
Kesha’s legal team – O’Melveny & Myers – attempted to have her statements excluded in court.
They complained the statements “would chill rape and domestic violence victims from reporting to authorities or filing a complaint out of fear that they will be sued for exercising their litigation right.”
Judge Schecter didn’t buy the argument.
She ruled that the singer had long planned to present the public statements in her case against Gottwald. Thus,
“Kesha cannot reasonably claim to have lacked notice that her liability is potentially predicated, in part, on [her team’s] conduct.”
In fact, Schecter added, once Luke’s defamation lawsuit against Kesha goes to trial, the court may find “the California complaint was a sham maliciously filed solely to defame plaintiffs as part of Kesha’s alleged campaign to destroy Gottwald as leverage to renegotiate her contracts.”
Today’s ruling won’t move the case to trial. Yet, by allowing him to present the ‘smear campaign’ statements, Judge Schecter’s ruling deals a significant win to Dr. Luke. And, a major setback for Kesha.
In short, as Schecter wrote,
“In sum, because the proposed allegations are transactionally related to those in the [Amended Complaint] and are not palpably insufficient or patently lacking in merit and because Kesha had notice of them, [Dr. Luke’s] cross-motion to amend the [complaint] is granted and Kesha’s motion to strike…is denied.”
Featured image by kesha (YouTube screengrab)
Be careful who you produce because they might come back and bite your hand..
The judge is best friends and married to a sony executive. This is not a fair case. Kesha is a good girl and im sure something bad happened. Luke doesnt have alot of positive work experience….all i know is that judge should not be on this case.
If this was truly a conflict of interest Kesha and her legal team can argue for the judge to recuse themself.
It says he is a partner at a firm that has Sony as a client. That doesn’t mean that he himself has Sony as a client.
According to his page, he chairs the Health Care Department of the law firm.
“Ed works primarily on health care transactions, regulatory compliance, health care payment and governance issues for varied providers (both for-profit and not-for-profit), vendors, GPOs, distributors and entrepreneurs.”
So he doesn’t work with Sony nor does he work in Entertainment law at all, his specialty is healthcare and he generally represents hospitals and other health care providers.
Not really a conflict of Interest
Yeah, she’s real credible at this point. Burn through whatever royalty money is left Ke$ha. Your lawyers must work on retainer. Wonder if they’re at risk of malfeasance yet. They also deserve to get nothing from this. How much you wanna bet she will settle instead of drag this out in court, although Dr Luke seems to hold the cards at this point. Should be really interesting.
Instructive that Katy Perry and Lady Gaga jumped ship. Neither one of them could be intimidated from helping poor little Ke$ha if she was so oppressed. Sounds like an ocean of lies has come to general knowledge. Where is Taylor Swift and her big, righteous support now?
Gaga and katy didnt jumped ship at all. Gaga is very supportive to Kesha. Gaga also testified that it was a record executive who yold BOTH of them at thw SAME TIME that katy was raped too. Not kesha texting gaga about it. Yes they talked about it but it was not kesha who revealed that katy was raped
taylor did monetary support to her. according to kesha’s mother, taylor donated $250,000 over the legal expenses. kesha’s mother posted this via twitter.
The jedge that was married to Sony exec was Kornreich! The case has a new judge Schecter and Luke himself is demanding a jury trial for his defemation case.
It was a record executive who told both kesha and gaga at the same time that katy was raped too!!!! Not kesha telling gaga
I hate his guts, Dr Luke doesn’t deserve to win, if Kesha’s statements were incorrect, i believe she wouldn’t have kept it going this long… I’m so proud of Kesha for sticking through the storm, and for all the animals fighting with her. i’m proud to call myself an animal and i hope someday Kesha will win this lawsuit. Stay strong, Kesha. Remember, there’s a rainbow after the storm????
There’s literally no proof to her claim, that’s why it’s hard to believe. Imagine if someone accused your father or brother of this, had no proof and had previously said under oath that nothing happened.
And I hate your guts. He won and you’re crying wolf now? Suck it up like a real man. So you think because she kept going for this long it doesn’t mean her statements were incorrect? Well, if someone shat in the middle of the road, you think that person would own up to it publically? You are just as shallow as the other b***es.
You’re an arrogant stuck up b****. No, generally we think if someone is willing to live in poverty refusing to work with a rapist to their own detriment for YEARS – there’s an actual reason for it you moron. Dr. Luke is trash and so are you. Rape cases are nearly impossible to prove, especially years later. What, exactly, is she supposed to show for proof? Date rape drugs don’t stay in the system forever and bruises heal.
“[Kesha’s] complaint was a sham maliciously filed solely to defame [Gottwald] as part of Kesha’s alleged campaign to destroy Gottwald as leverage to renegotiate her contracts.”
Even the kids on the short bus know that this is exactly what happened.
She simply wanted to get out of the contract. That is why she created all these lies. What a b@#$! She should go to jail.
sounds like the dude has a slam dunk case, itll be funny as hell when it finally ends and she not only will still be under contract but has to pay for her false claims. hilarious
I am a female who always has believed a females version if the story. I am a survivor myself. However, in this case it is clear that the sole purpose was to get Kesha out of her contract. All the details confirm this. Also, because the judges spouse works elsewhere, assumptions have been made about non-ethical behavior, which means you doubt that both the Sony employee and the judge are able to separate work from their personal life. Think about if someone accused you of doing the same. (My spouses knows very little about my work and my patients. )
It takes such a high bar for a man accused of any sexual manipulation to be shown as innocent, no less to be able to file a counter suit.
We need to be fair and not so lopsided that everyone who puts out a claim is guilty because they have a penis.
I am a female who always has believed a females version if the story. I am a survivor myself. However, in this case it is clear that the sole purpose was to get Kesha out of her contract. All the details confirm this. Also, because the judges spouse works elsewhere, assumptions have been made about non-ethical behavior, which means you doubt that both the Sony employee and the judge are able to separate work from their personal life. Think about if someone accused you of doing the same. (My spouses knows very little about my work and my patients. )
It takes such a high bar for a man accused of any sexual manipulation to be shown as innocent, no less to be able to file a counter suit.
We need to be fair and not so lopsided that everyone who puts out a claim is guilty because they have a penis.