Jay-Z scored a huge legal victory as a judge allowed him to file for dismissal of a rape lawsuit, citing a key procedural argument.
The case involves accusations from a woman who claims the rapper assaulted her in 2000 when she was just 13 years old.
On Thursday, January 2, Judge Analisa Torres of the Southern District of New York granted Jay-Z’s lawyer, Alex Spiro, permission to argue that the lawsuit is invalid, per court documents shared via X (previously Twitter) by journalist Meghann M. Cuniff.
Spiro pointed out that the New York City Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Act (GMV Law) didn’t take effect until December 2000, three months after the alleged incident.
“Plaintiff cannot recover... as a matter of law because the statute does not have retroactive effect,” Spiro wrote in his letter to the court. The law was also amended in 2022 to allow historical claims, but Spiro argued that doesn’t change its original limitations.
The woman, identified as “Jane Doe,” alleges that Jay-Z and Sean “Diddy” Combs assaulted her at an MTV Video Music Awards afterparty. Both stars deny the claims.
Doe’s attorney, Tony Buzbee, disagreed with the dismissal request, arguing the law’s purpose is to help victims, not block them.
Jay-Z’s dismissal motion is due by February 6, with responses by February 28 and a reply by March 14.
The legal fight is far from over, but this ruling marks a big step in Jay-Z’s defense.
