Kesha ordered to pay Dr Luke $375,000 in defamation case as her team vows to fight back
Music producer Dr Luke scored a win over singer Kesha amidst his six-year legal battle with her. The court has now ordered Kesha to pay KMI $375,000 for breach of contract. The ruling also found the singer guilty of defaming Dr Luke by claiming he raped fellow singer Katy Perry.
According to court documents obtained by E! News, the CEO of Interscope Records John Janick revealed information that Kesha texted Lady Gaga accusing Dr Luke (real name Lucasz Gottwald) of raping Perry, claiming he had heard other rumors of the same. Perry denied the claim in her deposition, which she fought to have sealed. She also stated she never told Janick that Dr Luke had raped her.
The documents of the ruling state that in the case of the sexual assault allegations "Perry unequivocally testified that Gottwald did not do so. In response, Kesha has not raised a triable issue. There is no evidence whatsoever that Gottwald raped Katy Perry or that Katy Perry, whose sworn testimony is unrefuted, must not be believed."
Gaga has never commented publically on the text messages, however, Dr Luke's team did issue a subpoena to her in 2017. Speaking about the ongoing battle, Dr Luke's team has said that "When Dr Luke did not agree to her contract terms, Kesha maliciously plotted to destroy Dr Luke's business and reputation to pressure him to give in," and also claims that Kesha's managers "discussed in emails their 'jihad' to 'ruin' Dr Luke 'in the press' and 'take down his business.'"
As part of the defamation case, the judge has ruled that Dr Luke is 'not a general public figure' and is thus not required to prove that Kesha's allegations of rape were out of 'malice'. In addition to finding Kesha guilty of defamation for allegedly falsely accusing him of raping Perry, the ruling has found that Kesha was in breach of her contract with KMI and has thus ordered her to pay them a "pre-judgment interest of $373,671.88."
Speaking through his lawyer Dr Luke stated "Today's important decision by the Court in Dr Luke's lawsuit brings him closer to the justice that he seeks. First, the Court has now ruled that Kesha made a false and defamatory accusation about Dr Luke when she baselessly claimed that he raped Katy Perry. Second, the Court rejected Kesha's attempts to invoke legal technicalities to avoid responsibility for her statements. And third, the Court also correctly held that Kesha breached her contract with Dr Luke's company...Dr Luke looks forward to the trial of his case where he will prove that Kesha's other false statements about him were equally false and defamatory."
Kesha's team says she will fight the decision, stating they "disagree with the Court's rulings" and "plan to immediately appeal."
The trial in the case continues.
Kesha had sued the music producer in 2014, claiming sexual assault and battery and seeking to invalidate her recording contracts with him. He had then filed a countersuit, accusing her of defamation.