Music producer Russell Simmons has refuted a report that threw a wrench in his ongoing litigation with a woman who has accused him of rape. And that woman’s attorney agreed that the report was “unsubstantiated.”
E! News’ report cited documents obtained by the outlet saying that Simmons is seeking $35,000 (Dh128,536) from the woman, who is identified only as Jane Doe, claiming that she filed the lawsuit for publicity.
“The reporting [in the E! News story] is wrong and court records show Mr Simmons’ attorneys’ motion to dismiss a frivolous and frankly outrageous lawsuit,” a spokeswoman for Simmons said.
“The plaintiff had 21 days to withdraw the suit after which, by statute, Mr Simmons’ lawyers filed for dismissal sanctions and appropriate legal fees,” she added.
The money being sought is not part of a new lawsuit, but rather is part of ongoing litigation in the $10-million suit brought against Simmons in March, alleging that the Def Jam founder forced himself on the Jane Doe in his hotel room after a concert in 1988.
E! News also reported that Simmons’ team requested that a judge impose sanctions against her attorney, A. Douglas Mastroianni, because the plaintiff “falsely suggests in her opposition... that Mr Simmons is somehow more culpable here because the law firm that represents him in this action also has represented Bill Cosby and Harvey Weinstein.”
Speaking to the claim, Mastroianni said that the story and rumours “appear to be completely unsubstantiated.”
“I’m not aware of any such suit nor am I aware of what the basis of such a suit would be,” he said in an email. “It’s not unusual for defendants in these cases to try to intimidate their victims, but [I] have not been served with any suit by Simmons.
“We think it’s a meritless attempt to intimidate a woman our complaint alleges Simmons has already grievously abused,” he added in a follow-up email.
A motion for sanctions will be heard on Monday.
More than a dozen women have accused the disgraced music mogul of sexual misconduct — allegations that Simmons has vehemently denied.
A separate federal lawsuit claiming that Simmons raped a documentary filmmaker in 2016 was dismissed in April.
