Celebrities

Bill Cosby filing says former DA made binding agreement not to prosecute

Lawyers for Bill Cosby claim the indecent assault charges against him in Pennsylvania should be tossed because a former district attorney made a binding promise in 2005 not to prosecute. In a habeas petition (PDF), the lawyers say former Montgomery County District Attorney Bruce Castor agreed not to prosecute Cosby…

Jan 13, 2016 7:22 AM CST

Sir Mix-A-Lot’s old cell number given to lawyer—who now gets raunchy texts, he cannot lie

Jonathan Nichols was still a law student at Seattle University when he started getting some unusual texts and messages on his new cellphone. The invitations to test-drive Ferraris or a Lamborghinis and suggestive photos of women clearly weren’t meant for him, the Seattle Times reports. And Nichols also refused the…

Jan 12, 2016 4:15 PM CST

Does Sean Penn face legal risk for El Chapo interview?

Actor Sean Penn is facing criticism for his October interview with escaped drug kingpin El Chapo, but a criminal conviction is unlikely, some legal experts say. Experts interviewed doubted that Penn could be successfully prosecuted under Section 1071 of the federal code, which bars the harboring of a fugitive, report…

Jan 11, 2016 7:15 AM CST

Does rule protect Bill Cosby’s wife from giving deposition testimony?

Legal experts are divided on whether and to what extent Bill Cosby’s wife, Camille, is protected from giving deposition testimony in a defamation suit against the comedian over his sexual-assault denials. Bill Cosby’s wife of 52 years, Camille, is appealing a federal magistrate’s order denying a motion to quash in…

Jan 11, 2016 6:15 AM CST

Bill Cosby won’t be charged in Los Angeles

Prosecutors in Los Angeles County have declined to charge Bill Cosby in two cases in which women claim he sexually assaulted them. Prosecutors said on Wednesday that charges are barred by the statute of limitations in one case, and the second case lacked sufficient evidence, report the New York Times…

Jan 7, 2016 12:16 PM CST

Will judge in Cosby criminal case allow similar rape claims as evidence?

Prosecutors who charged Bill Cosby with rape last month have some difficulties to overcome. The New Yorker points out the weaknesses. The case is old—the alleged rape occurred in 2004. The accuser waited a year to report the incident to police. The defense could argue she had a financial motive…

Jan 6, 2016 8:40 AM CST

Charges against Bill Cosby ‘scraped in under the wire’

Prosecutors in a Philadelphia suburb charged Bill Cosby with three counts of second-degree aggravated indecent assault last week, just weeks before the statute of limitations would have barred prosecution. Cosby is accused in the alleged January 2004 rape of a Temple University employee whom he was mentoring, the New York…

Jan 4, 2016 7:25 AM CST

Michael Jordan donates ‘multimillion-dollar’ settlement in advertising case to Chicago charities

After winning a $8.9 million jury verdict earlier this year in a federal lawsuit over unauthorized supermarket advertising, basketball legend Michael Jordan has reached a settlement and donated the proceeds to charity. He settled last month for an undisclosed sum both the suit against Dominick’s and related litigation against Jewel-Osco,…

Dec 16, 2015 1:45 PM CST

Bill Cosby files defamation countersuit against seven women who accused him of defamation

Seven women who accused Bill Cosby of defamation for denying sexual assault allegations are facing a counterclaim by the comedian claiming it is they who are defaming him. Cosby filed the counterclaim (PDF) in Massachusetts federal court Monday, the New York Times, the New York Daily News and USA Today…

Dec 15, 2015 11:03 AM CST

Guitarist for rock band Boston lacked basis for defamation suits, top state court says

After years of litigation, a top state court has definitively ended consolidated defamation cases by Boston guitarist Tom Scholz against the Boston Herald and the ex-wife of the rock band’s late frontman, Brad Delp. Scholz said news coverage in the Herald implied that he was to blame for Delp’s 2007…

Dec 1, 2015 12:35 PM CST

Did lawyers for 50 Cent spend too much? Woman awarded $7M by jury disputes $123K bill for his costs

An ongoing personal Chapter 11 bankruptcy case by Curtis Jackson III, better known as rapper 50 Cent, has put a spotlight on hefty expenses charged by his high-octane legal defense team in an earlier Manhattan tort case. Plaintiff Lastonia Leviston, who won a $7 million jury verdict in July, is…

Dec 1, 2015 10:30 AM CST

Is Reese Witherspoon’s name entitled to trademark protection? Judge weighs claims in actress’ suit

A Los Angeles judge considering a trademark suit by actress Reese Witherspoon has released a tentative opinion rejecting her claims against a company using her name to market jewelry. Judge Gerald Rosenberg of Los Angeles superior court said Witherspoon’s name “is not a protectable slogan,” according to the Hollywood Reporter.…

Nov 25, 2015 8:35 AM CST

Gloria Allred sues venue that barred her from Bill Cosby performance

A lawyer representing women who allege sexual assault by Bill Cosby filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against the government operators of an Atlanta venue that barred her from a Bill Cosby performance. Los Angeles lawyer Gloria Allred says the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre barred her from a May 2…

Nov 19, 2015 7:35 AM CST

Taylor Swift shakes off copyright suit; judge invokes her lyrics in opinion

A federal magistrate judge in California used Taylor Swift’s lyrics to dismiss a pro se lawsuit filed by a songwriter who claimed the song “Shake It Off” infringed the copyright for his own song “Haters Gone Hate.” In a Nov. 10 order, U.S. Magistrate Judge Gail Standish of Los Angeles…

Nov 13, 2015 8:11 AM CST

Judge orders Bill Cosby and his ex-lawyer to submit to deposition in suit over rape denial

A Los Angeles judge on Monday ordered Bill Cosby and his former lawyer to submit to a deposition in a defamation lawsuit filed by model Janice Dickinson. Judge Debre Katz Weintraub’s deposition ruling allows the lawyer, Martin Singer, and Cosby to refuse to answer some questions due to attorney-client privilege,…

Nov 3, 2015 9:39 AM CST