Did celebrities misuse COVID-19 grants? An in-depth analysis
The company actually sued Clarkson first, shortly after she filed for divorce, claiming she owed them US$1.4 million in unpaid management fees. Clarkson responded that they never had a contract and that the Blackstocks weren't licensed to act as her managers. She also countersued, accusing them of defrauding her of millions in earnings. Her ex-husband was accused of charging her excessively high fees for his unlicensed management services for more than a decade. In November 2023, Blackstock was ordered to pay Clarkson US$2.6 million in commission he received while acting as her manager, for procuring business deals on her behalf that should have been handled by her talent agents.
Kelly Clarkson ended up in a nasty legal battle with her former management company, Starstruck Management Group. It was particularly nasty because the company was run by her ex-husband, Brandon Blackstock, and his father.
LaBeouf admitted that he suffers from alcoholism and PTSD, which has caused him to harm himself and those around him in the past, but denied the allegations made in the lawsuit. However, in an interview in 2022, he LaBeouf made what seemed to be an admission of guilt saying, "I hurt that woman."
This isn't the first time Depp and Heard have been embroiled in a highly publicized legal battle. Johnny Depp attempted to sue the British tabloid newspaper The Sun for labeling him as a wife-beater in 2018. In a highly-publicized court case, his ex-wife Amber Heard appeared as a witness on behalf of The Sun. She told horrific stories about their relationship, and the court ruled that "the great majority" of Heard's claims of domestic abuse "could be proved to the civil standard." Depp's case was dismissed because the newspaper's use of the word "wife-beater" wasn't inaccurate.
If anyone can relate to Middleton's struggle with the tabloids, it's Meghan Markle. The Duchess of Sussex sued the Mail on Sunday newspaper in 2019 after they published a private letter she wrote to her father without her permission.
Her legal team argued that the publication breached the Data Protection Act through misuse of private information and copyright infringement. In 2021, the court ruled in her favor, agreeing that it was an unnecessary invasion of her privacy.
Most of us will remember the Fyre Festival fiasco of 2017. The failed music festival, arranged by a con artist, was advertised as a luxury event. A whole range of A-list celebs, including Kendall Jenner, Bella Hadid, and Emily Ratajkowski, were paid large sums to hype the event on social media. When attendees arrived at the disastrous festival to discover they'd been ripped off, Jenner and her fellow promoters came under fire.
Jenner was sued in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court by George Messer, who was in charge of the festival's bankruptcy filing. She was accused of misleading her followers by failing to disclose that she was paid for the promotion. She was paid US$275,000, to be exact. She also claimed the festival "would be filled with famous models on an 'exotic private island with first-class culinary experiences and a luxury atmosphere.'" Jenner agreed to pay US$90,000 to settle the suit.
The Duchess of Cambridge was swarmed by paparazzi after her marriage to Prince William. British tabloids are notorious for going to any lengths to get the picture or story they want, which resulted in a topless photo of Middleton being published in the French edition of Closer magazine.
Jennifer Lawrence was one of the most high-profile victims of the 2014 iCloud hacking scandal that resulted in the private photos of more than 100 celebrities ending up online. Many of the sites that posted the compromising photos refused to take them down, claiming that Lawrence didn't own the copyright as they weren't selfies (despite the fact they'd been stolen from her personal iCloud account).
Lawrence teamed up with several other women to threaten Google with a US$100 million lawsuit if they didn't remove the images from all websites owned or hosted by Google. Google claimed to have removed tens of thousands of photos and closed hundreds of accounts.
Johansson's legal team argued that Disney had broken their contractual agreement by releasing the movie on their streaming platform early, which reduced the box-office profits she was entitled to. It was a bold move that few actors have ever attempted and made a statement that powerful production companies can't stiff their actors and get away with it. They settled the dispute for an undisclosed sum, but Johansson and her team were reportedly very pleased.
In 2021, Scarlett Johansson bravely took on one of the largest media conglomerates in the world: Disney. She sued them for breach of contract over the release of the movie 'Black Widow.'
Lakshmi alleged that she was specifically targeted and threatened by the men. The judge found them not guilty, although he acknowledged that harsh language had been used.
Sofia Vergara was sued by her ex-fiancé, Nick Loeb, for custody of two embryos they created during their relationship in 2013. The couple chose to freeze them at the time, planning to proceed with IVF in the future. They split in 2014.
The Browns and the Goldmans sued Simpson for wrongful death, and the jury came to a unanimous verdict of guilt. He was ordered to pay US$33.5 million in damages to the families.
O.J. Simpson was the defendant in one of the biggest criminal trials of all time after he was arrested for the murder of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her companion, Ronald Goldman. Although he was found not guilty in 1995, the victims' families brought a civil suit against him in 1996.
Donald Trump is not afraid to sue! He's been involved in many lawsuits throughout his long career, but his most high-profile legal dispute came after he lost the US presidential election to Joe Biden in 2020. Trump and his Republican allies filed a whopping 42 lawsuits to contest the election results.
The suits were filed in a number of states and for a number of alleged offenses, such as irregularities in ballot counting and improper voter registration. Unfortunately for Trump, none of the judges ruled in his favor.
Sources: (Time) (SheKnows) (Business Insider)
See also: The most outrageous scandals of Donald Trump's political career
Loeb sued Vergara for the right to use the embryos with another woman as a surrogate, stating that he would waive her of any parental duties. Vergara's legal team argued that both parties had agreed not to implant the embryos without consent on both sides. The case was thrown out and Loeb failed to gain custody.
YouTuber Tasha K made several videos about Cardi B with salacious allegations, including that the rapper has herpes. Cardi filed a lawsuit in 2019, and in 2022 she took the stand in federal court and revealed that those videos caused her to feel "extremely suicidal," along with anxiety, fatigue, weight loss, and migraines. Court documents obtained by ET revealed that the case closed and on January 24 Cardi was awarded over US$4 million in damages by a federal jury. Tasha K, whose real name is Latasha Kebe, was found guilty on the claims of defamation, false light, and emotional distress.
It's now well known that Alec Baldwin fired a prop gun with real ammunition on the set of the film 'Rust' and accidentally killed the director of photography, 42-year-old Halyna Hutchins, while also injuring the director Joel Souza. There is much mystery and suspicion about why the prop gun was loaded, but Baldwin said he was cooperating with the police to find out how the tragic accident occurred. On February 15, lawyers for Halyna Hutchins’ family filed a wrongful-death suit against Baldwin, while also releasing an eerie animated video re-enacting the fatal scene, which the NY Post has shared. "[Baldwin] has significant portion liability, but there are others, and that’s what this case is going to be about—assessing fair apportionment to whoever’s responsible for the senseless tragedy,” Hutchins family lawyer Brian Panish said of the suit, which was filed in New Mexico.
The lawyers claimed Baldwin refused weapons training on how to perform the cross-draw action he was supposed to enact, and that he received the gun from assistant director David Halls instead of from the armorer, who was reportedly not even in the room, as he should have been. They also said that industry standard requires a crew to be behind protective glass during any scenes where the gun is pointed towards the camera. Though Baldwin previously claimed in an interview that he had no idea real bullets were loaded, and that he “didn’t pull the trigger," the film’s script supervisor said in a separate lawsuit the actor “intentionally … cocked and fired” the gun. The Hutchins’ family suit is the fourth legal claim filed against Baldwin and 'Rust' producers, the others from lighting technician Serge Svetnoy, script supervisor Mamie Mitchell, and armorer Gutierrez-Reed. Almost a year after Hutchins's death, Baldwin settled the suit for an undisclosed amount. In January 2023 he was formally charged with involuntary manslaughter. However, his 2024 trial was dismissed within a few days due to alleged misconduct by the prosecution.
Respected CNN anchor Chris Cuomo experienced a monumental fall from grace in 2021 when he was linked to the sexual assault case brought against his brother, Former Governor of New York Andrew Cuomo. He was suspended from his job at CNN while they investigated allegations that he was involved in building a defense case for his brother, jeopardizing his impartiality as a journalist. He was ultimately fired in November 2021, and has since decided to sue CNN for wrongful termination. His lawyers claim that the public firing "unjustifiably smeared" his journalistic integrity. He is looking for US$125 million in damages.
Over one week after Blac Chyna's defamation case against the Kardashian-Jenner family began, the Kardashians won. On May 2, 2022, the jury awarded no damages to Chyna, who accused the family of defamation and contract interference. Chyna filed the lawsuit against the Kardashian-Jenner family back in 2017 after her reality show 'Rob & Chyna' was canceled by E!, as she believed the family influenced the network in their decision to cancel the show. She co-starred alongside her ex, Rob Kardashian, for just one season. Ryan Seacrest served as an executive producer, and appeared on Chyna's list of witnesses, along with Kris Jenner and her boyfriend, Corey Gamble, Kim Kardashian, Khloé Kardashian, and Kylie Jenner.
Chyna's original filing focused on Rob Kardashian, claiming that his resentment towards her and his influence in the Kardashian family contributed to the show's cancelation. She also referenced the emotional distress caused by a 2017 incident where Kardashian posted compromising photos of her to Instagram without her consent. In a more recent update, Chyna stated that she intended to "re-focus my attention on my trial against Kris Jenner and her daughters Kim, Khloé, and Kylie." She continued, "When they got my No. 1 hit show killed back in January 2017, that not only hurt me financially and emotionally, that hurt my beautiful KIDS."
During opening arguments of the US$50 million Depp vs Heard defamation trial in 2022, Depp’s attorneys argued that Heard irreversibly damaged his career after she alleged that he abused her in her 2018 Washington Post opinion piece, and Heard’s lawyers countered that her op-ed is both true and protected under the First Amendment, arguing instead that it was Depp's struggles with substance abuse that led to his career downfall. Heard countersued him for defamation for US$100 million. In their opening arguments, Depp's lawyers claimed Heard became physically violent and verbally abusive after aggressively pursuing a relationship with him. They said Heard made up the story of Depp's alleged abuse to keep him when he wanted to file for divorce, and when that plan failed she "recast herself as an abuse survivor," including fabricated stories and faked photos. Rebutting against Depp's remarks on the whole, Heard’s attorneys claimed Depp wanted to ruin Heard's life and career, calling him an “obsessed ex-husband hellbent on revenge" who was allegedly physically and verbally and violent—much of which they claim happened when Depp was blacked out from drugs and alcohol.
Johnny Depp took the stand to give his witness testimony, and shared that he was in "complete shock" when he first heard her domestic abuse allegations against him, which he claims "were not based in any species of truth". "Never did I myself reach the point of striking Ms. Heard in any way, nor have I ever struck any woman in my life," the actor said under oath. He added regarding her allegations, "Since I knew there was no truth to it whatsoever, I felt it my responsibility to stand up not only for myself in that instance but stand up for my children, who at the time were 14 and 16," referring to his daughter Lily-Rose and son Jack. "My goal is the truth," he said, explaining that "it killed [him]" to have his reputation ruined and have the people in his life "think that I was a fraud and had lied to them." He continued, "It's been six years of trying times ... I didn't deserve that, nor did my children, nor did the people who have believed in me for all these years. I didn't want any of those people to believe that I had done them wrong or lied to them or that I was a fraud. I pride myself on honesty." He added, "Truth is the only thing I'm interested in."
Six weeks after the tumultuous trial began, a jury found that Amber Heard was indeed guilty of defaming Johnny Depp. They concluded that the statements she made about the alleged abuse in her marriage were "false" and said that she had acted with "actual malice." Depp originally sued Heard for US$50 million, but she was ordered to pay US$10 million in compensation, plus an additional US$350,000 for punitive damages.
Although the jury generally landed in favor of Depp, they found that he had defamed Heard too, specifically in a 2020 statement his lawyer made that claimed Heard's domestic abuse allegations were just a hoax. Depp was ordered to pay Heard US$2 million in compensation.
Heard was quick to release a statement expressing her disappointment with the result. "I'm heartbroken that the mountain of evidence still was not enough to stand up to the disproportionate power, influence and sway of my ex-husband," she said. "I'm sad I lost this case. But I am sadder still that I seem to have lost a right I thought I had as an American—to speak freely and openly."
Depp also spoke out soon after the verdict to thank the jury, who he says "gave me my life back." He continued, "I hope that my quest to have the truth be told will have helped others, men or women, who have found themselves in my situation, and that those supporting them never give up. I also hope that the position will now return to innocent until proven guilty, both within the courts and in the media."
In 2008, the now-exes bought a controlling stake in the South of France vineyard and home Château Miraval, where they were later married. But the site of so much love has turned into a battlefield, as Pitt has filed a lawsuit against Jolie for selling her stakes in their multi-million dollar venture despite their prior agreement neither would do so unless the other person approved.
Not only that, but in a court filing, obtained by People, Pitt claims his ex intentionally "sought to inflict harm on" him by selling her interests in the wine company to a "stranger," and the actor also added a jab by accusing Jolie of contributing "nothing to Miraval's success."
Pitt and his lawyers say Jolie planned to sell her interest in October to Tenute del Mondo, which is "bent on taking control of Miraval" and is "indirectly owned and controlled by Yuri Shefler, the Russian billionaire who controls the Stoli Group." They argue the sale infringes on Pitt's right of first refusal, and that Shefler is launching a hostile takeover, trying to obtain "confidential and proprietary information for the benefit of his competing enterprise." The documents accuse Shefler of having "cutthroat business tactics and dubious professional associations," which "jeopardizes the reputation of the brand Pitt so carefully built." His lawyers added: "Jolie has sought to force Pitt into partnership with a stranger, and worse yet, a stranger with poisonous associations and intentions."
Pitt is seeking damages "in an amount to be proven at trial"—for which he is requesting a trial by jury—plus Jolie's sale to be declared "null and void."
After the trial ended, Heard doubled down on her attempt to appeal the verdict on the basis of insufficient evidence. Her team argued that Depp's claim that he lost his 'Pirates of the Caribbean' role due to her Washington Post op-ed "proceeded solely on a defamation by implication theory, abandoning any claims that Ms. Heard's statements were actually false." They also claimed that one of the jurors who worked on the trial was not properly vetted as the person summoned to court was supposed to be born in 1945, but Heard's team claims that the person who served "appears to have been born in 1970." Still, the judge denied her request for a mistrial. In her statement on July 13, the judge concluded that there was "no evidence of fraud or wrongdoing" to warrant a mistrial. On the issue of the juror, the judge asserted that he was properly vetted, met all of the state requirements, and that Heard and her legal team had the opportunity to review and approve him before the trial.
Heard then filed a notice of appeal on July 21, with Depp filing a notice of appeal the following day for "all adverse rulings and from the final judgement order."
Jen Shah, known for appearing on the reality series 'The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City,' pleaded guilty to fraud charges just a week before her criminal trial was due to begin. Shah was accused of one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, carried out through a telemarketing scheme. The dramatic moment of her arrest was captured on 'RHOSLC' in 2021, although the star denied her involvement, saying "the only thing I’m guilty of is being Shah-mazing." Her assistant Stuart Smith was charged with the same crimes but pleaded guilty in November 2021, and was expected to testify against Shah during her trial. She made a last-minute U-turn and entered a guilty plea, reducing her possible prison sentence from 30 years to 14 years. She was ordered to serve six and a half years in prison.
Alongside their public fight over Château Miraval, the exes are also the subjects of an anonymous 2016 lawsuit in which the plaintiff alleges being assaulted by her “then-husband” on a private plane, Variety reports. As per a report from Puck, Jolie had told an FBI agent several years ago that Pitt “physically and verbally assaulted” her and their children when they were on the plane, and Pitt allegedly grabbed her shoulders and shouted insults at her. Their physical altercation caused her to sustain injuries, including on her elbow, and Jolie claimed Pitt was drinking at the time, and had poured beer on her. Pitt’s team subsequently denied all accusations. The FBI agent met with the assistant U.S. attorney, however, and concluded that they would not pursue criminal charges, which led to Jolie anonymously filing a Freedom of Information Act suit against the FBI in order to obtain the documents related to the federal investigation against Pitt. According to Jolie’s complaint, which was filed under Ms. Doe, she writes that it's all for her children, so that they can get the "necessary ongoing care and medical attention" they need, likely also related to their infamous custody battle. The rumors had spread in 2016 that Pitt was being investigated for child abuse after he allegedly got physical with his son, Maddox, when the then-15-year-old intervened in a fight between his parents, though Pitt's team issued a statement at the time that "it did not reach the level of physical abuse."
Vanessa Bryant sued Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors after finding out that first responders took graphic photos of her husband Kobe Bryant and their 13-year-old daughter Gianna Bryant's remains at the site of the 2020 helicopter crash that took their lives. Not only did they take photos of the bodies, they subsequently shared them. Her lawyers cited emotional distress and requested millions of dollars in compensation. They reached a settlement amount of US$28.85 million, which reportedly includes claims from Vanessa and covers any future claims from her and Kobe's daughters.
In response, Jolie's company Nouvel launched a US$250 million lawsuit against Pitt for his alleged scheme to push her out of the business and reduce its value as an asset. "In retaliation for the divorce and custody proceedings, Pitt embarked on a multi-faceted, years-long campaign to seize control of Château Miraval and appropriate the company's assets for his benefit and that of his own companies and friends," the court documents read. "Appointing himself the rightful owner of Château Miraval, his twin objectives were to usurp the value of Jolie's company, Nouvel, and to obtain sole ownership of Château Miraval."
The complaint goes on to accuse Pitt of purposefully wasting the company's assets, "spending millions on vanity projects, including more than $1 million on swimming pool renovations and other funds restoring a recording studio." All of this was supposedly done while keeping Jolie in the dark and refusing to provide information about the winery's financial development.
The Colombian singer was ordered by a judge on September 28 to stand trial in Spain for allegedly failing to pay 14.5 million euros (US$13.9 million) in taxes on income that she earned between 2012 and 2014. Prosecutors will seek an eight-year prison sentence and a hefty fine if she's found guilty. The singer was unwavering on the point of her innocence and initially rejected a plea deal, but finally settled with the state shortly before the case was due to go to trial in November 2023.
President-elect, Donald Trump, is no stranger to lawsuits, but he sued CNN for US$475 million in punitive damages, with an additional US$75,000 in compensatory damages, claiming that the cable news giant harmed his reputation with "false, defamatory, and inflammatory mischaracterizations of him," according to a lawsuit filed October 3, 2022, as per CBS. Trump claims CNN's conduct "is intended to interfere with [his] political career," with specific focus on CNN's use of the term "Big Lie" to describe Trump's "stated concerns about the integrity of the election process for the 2020 presidential election." The lawsuit takes quite a leap and claims that "Big Lie" "is a direct reference to a tactic employed by Adolf Hitler and appearing in Hitler's 'Mein Kampf'" to generate hatred against Jews and to justify their genocide.
A group of prominent British celebrities banded together to take on the Associated Press, publisher of several of the UK's most popular and salacious tabloids including The Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday, and The Mail Online. They claim to be “the victims of abhorrent criminal activity and gross breaches of privacy.” The plaintiffs include Prince Harry, Sir Elton John, John's husband David Furnish, Elizabeth Hurley, and actress Sadie Frost. A lawyer representing both Frost and Prince Harry made a statement claiming that the Associated Press hired private investigators to plant listening devices in the alleged victim's private cars and homes. They are also accused of using private investigators to listen in on private phone calls, obtain medical records under false pretenses, and obtain insider information from corrupt police contacts. They even allege that bank accounts were accessed “through illicit means and manipulation.”
“The alleged crimes represent the tip of the iceberg,” the statement warned. The Associated Press has responded with a definitive denial, stating that they “utterly and unambiguously refute these preposterous smears which appear to be nothing more than a pre-planned and orchestrated attempt to drag the Mail titles into the phone hacking scandal concerning articles up to 30 years old.” Both Prince Harry, and his wife, Meghan Markle, have sued the Associated Press for similar invasions of privacy and defamation in recent years. On both occasions, they won.
Kevin Spacey's sexual misconduct trial in New York took place in 2022, in which Broadway actor Anthony Rapp, who accused the 'House of Cards' star of making a sexual advance toward him when he was 14 years old, sought US$40 million in compensatory and punitive damages for battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Rapp took the stand on October 11 and said it was at a party at Spacey's house in 1986 where Spacey allegedly "forced himself" on him "by pinning him down on a bed," according to Associated Press.
"They are not true," Spacey said of the allegations when he took the stand on October 17. Spacey has been criticized for trying to shift attention of the assault claims onto his coming out as a gay man, and arguably tried the same thing in court as he spoke about his "white supremacist and neo-Nazi" father who made it hard for him to publicly disclose his sexuality.
Prior to Spacey taking the stand, the judge dismissed Rapp's claim of intentional infliction of emotional distress, and having previously dismissed a charge of sexual assault due to the expiry of the statute of limitations. At the end of the trial, the jury found Spacey not liable for battery either and the case was formally dismissed.
This isn't the only allegation to come up against Spacey, however, as a lawsuit arose in 2018 involving the alleged sexual assault of a young man, and in May 2022 Spacey was charged with sexually assaulting three men in the UK, though he pleaded not guilty.
Notorious far-right conspiracy theorist Alex Jones suffered a historic loss in the civil suit brought against him by the families of the Sandy Hook victims. In 2012, 20 children and six adults were killed by a mass shooter at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut. Following the devastating tragedy, the 'Infowars' host used his public platform to claim that the massacre was a hoax. Jones spread the theory that the shooting was staged by the government as part of a plot to take guns away from Americans. He said that no one had been killed and that the grieving family members were simply actors. Jones was taken to court for defamation by several Sandy Hook parents in August and was ordered to pay them US$49.3 million in damages.
In September, Jones appeared before the court again for another defamation trial brought by the families of eight more of the victims. They claimed that his harmful conspiracies, broadcasted to his millions of viewers, led to a decade of harassment and death threats. The trial started in September and featured three weeks of heartbreaking testimony from those affected by the shooting and Jones' theories. "When every single one of these families were drowning in grief, Alex Jones put his foot right on top of them," said the plaintiffs' lawyer during closing arguments.
A lawyer in the case said the families should receive at least US$550 million from Jones in compensation, as his Sandy Hook content got 550 million views between 2012 and 2018. However, the jury ruled that Jones should make 15 separate awards to the various injured parties, totaling a whopping US$965 million. Jones and his company, Free Speech Systems, already filed for bankruptcy in July. The conspiracy theorist claims to have no money at all, but it's reported that he and his team flew to Connecticut for the trial in a private jet, where they stayed in a villa with a private pool and tennis court.
Jones is scheduled to appear in court once again for a third civil trial related to the Sandy Hook shooting later in 2022. In regards to his financial situation, one former attorney told MSNBC, "I just don’t see how he winds up anything but basically broke now for the rest of his life."
George Floyd's young daughter Gianna, her mother Roxie Washington, and their legal team filed a US$250 million lawsuit against Kanye West following the rapper's comments on Floyd's 2020 death, which was proven to have occurred at the hands of the Minneapolis police. In a news release from Witherspoon Law Group and Dixon & Dixon Attorneys at Law, Floyd’s family issued a cease-and-desist letter to West for his comments on the 'Drink Champs' podcast, particularly those that claimed Floyd died as a result of fentanyl as opposed to officer Derek Chauvin's knee on his neck for 9.5 minutes—a death which sparked a worldwide movement against police brutality.
The actress eventually agreed to settle the defamation suit by paying her ex-husband US$1 million. The amount is significantly reduced from the US$8.35 she was ordered to pay after the televised trial earlier in Virginia, and it will come from her insurance carrier.
In a statement, Depp’s attorneys said that he would donate the money to charity. In her own statement on Instagram announcing her decision to settle the case, Heard said she had “lost faith in the American legal system” and criticized the way her testimony was turned into "entertainment and social media fodder." She added that the settlement allows her to finally "emancipate" herself from their marriage, and clarified, "this is not an act of concession." Heard added, "My voice forever remains the most valuable asset I have."
After Jason Sudeikis and Olivia Wilde condemned their former nanny for giving a bombshell interview to the Daily Mail, detailing what they called "scurrilous accusations" about the couple's toxic end, the nanny is suing the former couple with claims that they fired her due to issues with her mental health. The nanny, Ericka Genaro, filed court documents on February 14 alleging that she suffered from “extreme anxiety” following the couple’s separation in 2020, during which time she was having late-night chats with Sudeikis in which she "ostensibly felt she had to ‘pick sides’ between the parents," causing a stress which ultimately became “debilitating,” reports PA Media. Genaro claims that she informed Sudeikis of her need for a three-day medical leave of absence, reportedly "recommended to her by a doctor," and that the actor had "terminated her on the spot." She filed for wrongful termination on the grounds of discrimination on the basis of disability because she believes "her termination was because of her disability of anxiety/depression, and for seeking the reasonable accommodation of a three day leave of absence for same."
Drake and 21 Savage had a bit of fun with their "fake" album promotion for 'Her Loss,' but it came at a price. Condé Nast, the parent company of Vogue, filed a lawsuit against the rappers in November 2022 over fake Vogue covers they used to promote their work, which reportedly led fans to believe there was a special edition of the magazine dropping soon. Vogue reportedly asked several times for all promos using the Vogue name to be taken down, but to no avail. The lawsuit accused the rappers of putting up posters of the fake cover in major cities and even getting their teams to hand out copies of the fake magazine on the streets, which reportedly is a direct replica of Vogue and even includes a photoshopped picture of Anna Wintour posing with Drake.
On February 16, 2023, it was announced that the rappers had settled the lawsuit for an undisclosed sum. Condé Nast initially asked for at least US$4 million in damages.
Later, when VanOrman asked if Paltrow looked like everyone else on the slope regarding gear, to which Paltrow answered it was "always [her] intention," VanOrman responded, "Probably had a better ski outfit though I bet," with a chuckle.
When Paltrow spoke about how she allegedly yelled at Sanderson after the impact, VanOrman said, "You're small but mighty," then added, "Actually you're not that small," as Paltrow chuckled uncomfortably.
VanOrman even tried to get some information about Paltrow's relationship to Taylor Swift, asking if the US$1 that Paltrow is seeking in damages was inspired by Swift's 2017 case in which she did the same. The judge asked for relevance when VanOrman appeared to be stunned that Paltrow didn't know about the suit during previous questioning in 2020. “Are you good friends with Taylor Swift?” VanOrman asked, to which Paltrow replied: “I would not say we’re good friends. We are friendly. I’ve taken my kids to one of her concerts before, but we don’t talk very often." VanOrman then asked if Paltrow had given Swift “intimate gifts for Christmas,” but the judge said Paltrow did not have to answer that question.
The most fascinating part of the trial was, perhaps, Paltrow's testimony. The actress and Sanderon's attorney, Kristin VanOrman, went viral for their bizarre exchange on the stand. It began when Paltrow took the stand and VanOrman asked how tall she was. Paltrow said she's just under 5'10" and added, "I think I’m shrinking though." VanOrman replied, "You and me both. I am so jealous. I have to wear four-inch heels just to make it to 5'5." Paltrow then looked at her shoes and said, "Oh, they’re very nice," and VanOrman thanked her.
Gwyneth Paltrow came out victorious in her Utah trial over an alleged 2016 hit-and-run ski accident. Retired optometrist Terry Sanderson sued the Goop guru for US$300,000 over the incident. Both parties claim the other plowed into them. Paltrow countersued Sanderson for a symbolic amount of US$1 and the trial got underway on March 21, 2023. Given Paltrow's celebrity status, public interest was high and every moment of the trial was reported and analyzed, from her "Jeffrey Dahmer" outfit on the first day to her bizarre exchanges on the stand. However, the jury took less than three hours to come to a verdict when the two-week spectacle finally came to an end. They ruled definitively that Paltrow was not at fault and that Sanderson was fully liable for the collision. He was ordered to pay her the requested US$1, but whether or not he will be ordered to pay her legal fees will be decided at a later date. As Paltrow left the courtroom following the verdict, she stopped to tell Sanderson, "I wish you well."
In an email statement, Paltrow said, “I felt that acquiescing to a false claim compromised my integrity. I am pleased with the outcome and I appreciate all of the hard work of Judge Holmberg and the jury, and thank them for their thoughtfulness in handling this case.”
Kesha has been involved in a series of lawsuits and countersuits with her ex-producer, Dr. Luke, for the past nine years. She has accused the producer of both psychological and abuse, which she claims Sony music was aware of. In response, Dr. Luke claimed that Kesha had fabricated stories of assaults in order to escape her contract, and countersued her for defamation and breach of contract. Many years later, the legal saga came to an end as they managed to reach a settlement out of court right before the trial date in July. They both indicate that this is the end of their legal battle and wish to move on.
A class action lawsuit was taken against The 1975 by Malaysian artists and festival vendors. It was in relation to the cancelation of the Good Vibes Festival in Kuala Lumpur following lead singer Matty Healy's tirade against the country’s anti-LGBTQ laws and his "performative" kiss with bandmate Ross MacDonald on stage. “I do not see the point of inviting The 1975 to a country and then telling us who we can [be initmate] with,” Healy said on stage. Same-sex acts are criminalized in Malaysia and punishable by fines and up to 20 years in prison. Their set was cut short and the Ministry of Communications and Digital promptly canceled the rest of the festival.
The lawsuit, readied by Malaysian law firm Thomas Philip will name all four members of The 1975 and seek compensation over losses suffered as a result of the "deliberate reckless act," according to the firm's founder, Matthew Thomas Philip.
Since Hennepin County Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Andrew Baker said during his testimony that fentanyl was not the direct cause of Floyd's death, and emergency physician and toxicologist Dr. Vik Bebarta confirmed that Floyd's death was due to Chauvin's knee on his neck, West's spreading of "blatantly false" and "malicious statements" in order to "promote his brands, and increase marketing value and revenue for himself, his business partners, and associates," will have serious consequences, reports Click2Houston.
“The interests of the child are priority,” Attorney Nuru Witherspoon, partner at The Witherspoon Law Group, said. “George Floyd’s daughter is being traumatized by Kanye West’s comments and he’s creating an unsafe and unhealthy environment for her.”
Kesha released a statement about the settlement, saying, "Only God knows what happened that night,” wrote Kesha, referring to an alleged incident at the center of the defamation suit, which involved Dr. Luke drugging and assaulting her in 2005. “As I always said, I cannot recount everything that happened. I am looking forward to closing the door on this chapter of my life and beginning a new one. I wish nothing but peace to all parties involved.”Dr. Luke also released a statement following the settlement: “While I appreciate Kesha again acknowledging that she cannot recount what happened that night in 2005, I am absolutely certain that nothing happened,” Dr. Luke wrote. “I never drugged or assaulted her and would never do that to anyone. For the sake of my family, I have vigorously fought to clear my name for nearly 10 years. It is time for me to put this difficult matter behind me and move on with my life. I wish Kesha well.”
Algerian boxer Imane Khelif overcame great adversity to take home the gold medal from the Paris 2024 Olympics. Her gender, which is female, became the subject of debate after she defeated Italian boxer Angela Carini, who gave up on the fight without finishing and fell to her knees crying in the ring. Carini stated that she had never been punched so hard, despite the fact that they were competing in the same weight class. Many high-profile figures shared photos of Khelif with abusive comments about her perceived masculinity. J.K. Rowling shared a photo from the match with the caption, “The smirk of a male who’s knows he’s protected by a misogynist sporting establishment enjoying the distress of a woman he’s just punched in the head, and whose life’s ambition he’s just shattered.” Elon Musk shared a post on X that stated, “men don’t belong in women’s sport," with the comment "Absolutely." These celebrity commentators fueled the flames of vitriol against Khelif as her body and appearance were ridiculed on social media and she was falsely identified as a man by media outlets.
Despite the painful circumstances, Khelif went on to give a stellar performance throughout the Olympic Games and won the gold medal for Women's Welterweight Boxing. At the same time, she filed a criminal complaint with French authorities based on “acts of aggravated cyber harassment.” Both J.K. Rowling and Elon Musk have been named in the complaint. Khelif is represented by Paris-based attorney Nabil Boudi, who filed the lawsuit against 'X,' meaning unknown persons, which allows French prosecutors to investigate anyone who may have been involved, including those who harassed Khelif online using pseudonyms. In regards to the named figures like Rowling and Musk, Boudi said, “What we’re asking is that the prosecution investigates not only these people but whoever it feels necessary. If the case goes to court, they will stand trial.”
On November 25, 2024, Drake filed a legal petition against Universal Music Group (UMG) and Spotify, accusing them of using illegal tactics to boost Kendrick Lamar’s hit diss track 'Not Like Us' against him.
Once you hit a certain level of fame or a certain bank account balance, lawsuits are seemingly inevitable. Realistically, we'd probably all get sued for libel if all of our social media posts and conversations were analyzed with a fine-tooth comb! It's no wonder then that celebrities are constantly besieged with legal problems. Some are so low-level that they don't even make it into the tabloids, while others dominate the headlines from start to finish.
Click through this gallery to look back at some of the most significant high-profile celebrity lawsuits of all time.
Celebrity legal battles: from scandal to courtroom drama
Many of these cases set new precedents for the legal system
CELEBRITY Law
Once you hit a certain level of fame or a certain bank account balance, lawsuits are seemingly inevitable. Realistically, we'd probably all get sued for libel if all of our social media posts and conversations were analyzed with a fine-tooth comb! It's no wonder then that celebrities are constantly besieged with legal problems. Some are so low-level that they don't even make it into the tabloids, while others dominate the headlines from start to finish.
Click through this gallery to look back at some of the most significant high-profile celebrity lawsuits of all time.