Jay-Z is fighting to protect a $119,000 settlement he is set to receive from a previously dismissed paternity case after the defendant involved filed for bankruptcy.
According to legal documents, Jay-Z’s legal team filed a motion accusing Lillie Coley, the godmother and legal guardian of Rymir Satterthwaite, of attempting to use bankruptcy proceedings to “help her evade the court-ordered consequences of her actions.”
Coley previously claimed that Jay-Z, whose real name is Shawn Carter, was Satterthwaite’s biological father. Satterthwaite’s mother, the late Wanda Satterthwaite, was also involved in the claims. Jay-Z denied the allegations, and his request to dismiss the lawsuit was later granted.
Coley filed for bankruptcy last year, a move that could potentially wipe out some of her debts. However, Jay-Z argues that the filing is an effort to avoid paying the money she owes him following the dismissal of the lawsuit. His attorneys claimed she has “harassed” him for more than a decade through “numerous unfounded court filings, online harassment campaigns and public statements.”
The latest motion also accuses Coley of having a “history of vexatious litigation and attempts to avoid paying the debt” owed to Jay-Z.
Earlier this year, reports revealed that Hov was “entitled to recover” $119,000 in attorney fees and related expenses connected to the case.
In a previous statement addressing another legal issue tied to the claims, Jay-Z’s attorneys described the lawsuits as part of a “decades-long harassment” campaign. They also pointed to California’s anti-SLAPP law, which states that “a prevailing defendant on a special motion to strike shall be entitled to recover that defendant’s attorney’s fees and costs,” as a key factor in the ruling.
