Attorney Tony Buzbee has sued Roc Nation, accusing the agents for Jay-Z’s company of trying to prevent his firm from pursuing cases relating to Sean “Diddy” Combs.
Source: Kevin Mazur / Getty
Roc Nation is being sued by the Texas attorney who represents a woman accusing Jay-Z and Sean “Diddy” Combs of sexually assaulting her in 2000. Buzzbee announced the lawsuit in a statement on Wednesday, Dec. 17, posting a lengthy statement to Instagram.
“Today The Buzbee Law Firm filed suit against Roc Nation, and lawyers Marcy Croft, and Quinn Emanuel for violation of various state laws, including barratry and impersonation of a public official,” the statement begins. “The case was brought on behalf of a former client of the firm who was illegally solicited by agents working on behalf of the Defendants. These agents pretended to working for the State of Texas and offered the former client money to sue the Buzbee Law Firm.”
Buzbee goes on to claim that the defendants are attempting to “obstruct justice” in an effort to prevent his firm from pursuing cases relating to Diddy in New York.
“This illegal conduct has happened more than two dozen times to date and has resulted in two utterly frivolous cases against the firm,” the statement reads. “The lawsuit filed today alleges that the Defendants’ conspiracy is intended to obstruct justice and prevent the Buzbee Law Firm from pursuing cases related to the Diddy litigation in New York. The conduct isn’t just alleged—it was caught on tape.”
“As set forth in the lawsuit, earlier this week, agents acting on Croft’s behalf again were caught on tape soliciting and offering money (up to $10,000) to former clients of The Buzbee Law Firm to convince them to file a frivolous case against the Buzbee Law Firm,” the statement says. “These folks have now stooped to a new low to try to intimidate the lawyers of the Buzbee Law Firm from doing their important work. They now are contacting clients and former clients and actually offering them money to sue me. This conduct was specifically targeted at our firm so we would not pursue cases related to the Diddy litigation. LET ME BE CLEAR: we will not be bullied or intimidated. The Defendants this time overstepped, got sloppy, and stupidly got caught at their illegal scheme on tape. We have reported this conduct to the authorities, and intend to cooperate with the authorities to ensure all involved are prosecuted to the full extent allowed under Texas law.”
In response to this lawsuit, a Roc Nation spokesperson has issued a statement calling it a “sham” while insisting that it is actually meant to distract from Buzbee’s own questionable practices.
“Tony Buzbee‘s baloney lawsuit against Roc Nation is nothing but another sham,” the statement reads, according to VIBE. “It’s a pathetic attempt to distract and deflect attention. This sideshow won’t change the ultimate outcome and true justice will be served soon.”
Tony Buzbee Is Facing Two New Lawsuits
Roc Nation’s assertion that Tony Buzzbee has questionable practices of his own comes as the attorney was targeted in two lawsuits. According to Houston Public Media, these complaints accuse the lawyer and his law firm of pocketing settlement money through unethical accounting practices. Both lawsuits were filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana last week.
In the first case, Adam Guidry, a former ship captain, alleges Buzbee took advantage of him by not explaining the associated expenses in his case. Guidry retained the Buzbee law firm in 2020 after he was injured on a dredging ship owned by Callan Marine. Though the case was settled, Guidry’s attorneys claim he received only $5,123 of the $350,000 settlement, with the rest going to Buzbee’s firm.
The other lawsuit was filed by a ship deckhand named Matthew Ray Thompson. He claims Buzbee didn’t give him the money he was entitled to through the Jones Act, which provides a remedy to seamen injured in the course of their employment aboard a vessel due to the negligence of their employer, according to the U.S. Department of Labor’s website.
Buzbee has responded to both lawsuits by calling them “patently frivolous,” insisting they were designed to harm his reputation and undermine his firm’s role in representing alleged sexual assault victims in the ongoing civil litigation against Combs. The attorney also claims the former clients were financially incentivized to file lawsuits against him, alleging that one former client was offered $10,000 to do so.
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