Jay-Z is a step closer in his quest to dismiss a lawsuit accusing him of the 2000 rape of a 13-year-old girl.
On Thursday, January 2, Judge Analisa Torres of the Southern District of New York granted a request from the rap mogul’s lawyer, Alex Spiro, to file a motion to dismiss the case on procedural grounds, per court documents shared via X by legal affairs journalist Meghann M. Cuniff.
Spiro argued in a Monday, December 30, letter to Judge Torres that the woman suing Jay-Z cannot make a claim against the rapper (real name Shawn Carter) under New York City’s Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Act law because it only came into effect after she alleges she was assaulted by Jay-Z.
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In her lawsuit, the woman — identified only as “Jane Doe” — claimed she was raped by Jay-Z and Sean “Diddy” Combs at an MTV Video Music Awards afterparty in September 2000 when she was just 13. (Both stars have denied the allegations.) The NYC law offering civil recourse to victims of gender-motivated violence came into effect in December that year. (It was amended in December 2022 to allow a two-year window for people to come forward with historical claims that might have otherwise passed the statute of limitations.)
According to Judge Torres’ decision Thursday, Jay-Z’s lawyer has been granted permission to file a motion to dismiss the case by February 6. Jane Doe’s attorneys will then have until February 28 to file opposition papers. Jay-Z has a chance to reply by March 14.
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“Plaintiff cannot recover for her sole claim under the Victims of Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Act (the GMV Law), as a matter of law, because the statute does not have retroactive effect,” Spiro wrote in a letter to Judge Torres on Monday.
He continued, “Plaintiff asserts a violation of the GMV Law for conduct that purportedly occurred in September 2000. But the GMV Law was not enacted until December 19, 2000, three months after the FAC claims the conduct occurred, and cannot apply retroactively to create a cause of action unavailable to Plaintiff at the time in question.”
Doe’s attorney, Tony Buzbee, wrote a letter to Judge Torres on Tuesday, December 31, opposing Jay-Z’s request to file for dismissal. Buzbee wrote that “Defendant’s argument as to the GMVA is unpersuasive, as it is contrary to the law’s primary intention: to make it easier for victims of gender-motivated violence to seek civil remedies in court—not, as Defendant would have it, make it harder,” per a court document shared by Cuniff on Thursday.
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Last week, Judge Torres said in court documents obtained by TMZ that Jane Doe can remain unnamed as she refused Jay-Z’s first attempt to have the lawsuit dismissed and Doe’s identity revealed. However, the judge noted the circumstances could change as the case moves forward. Torres stated she intends to revisit the issue if and when the case progresses.
Doe’s attorney, Buzbee, and Jay-Z are also locked in their own legal battle. Jay-Z is suing Buzbee, accusing him of extortion and defamation. Buzbee filed his own suit against Jay-Z’s Roc Nation earlier this month, alleging the company bribed his clients to file suits against his firm, threatened former clients and impersonated state officials. (Roc Nation called the lawsuit “baloney.”)
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