Jay-Z asks appeals court to revive Buzbee extortion case after accuser recants
Jay-Z has asked a California appeals court to revive his extortion lawsuit against lawyer Tony Buzbee, days after the woman who accused him of sexual assault said her claim was false.
The petition, filed on Sept. 24, asks California's Second Appellate District for a rehearing, a formal request for judges to reconsider a decision. The court had dismissed the rapper's extortion and defamation case against Buzbee earlier in September, before the recantation was filed Billboard.
Buzbee, a Houston-based attorney, represented the unnamed woman, listed as Jane Doe, in her December 2024 lawsuit. That case claimed Jay-Z, whose legal name is Shawn Carter, and Sean 'Diddy' Combs drugged and assaulted a teenage girl in 2000 after an MTV Video Music Awards after-party.
Jay-Z denied the allegations at the time. He called them a "blackmail attempt" and countersued Buzbee for extortion and defamation.
The appeals court rejected that countersuit. It ruled there was no evidence Buzbee had filed the rape claims knowing they were false. It also ruled that demand letters sent before a lawsuit are a normal part of litigation and should not be treated as extortion. An earlier Superior Court judge had found the letters were covered by litigation privilege, the legal protection for statements connected to court action Courthouse News.
That position shifted last week. In a court filing, the Jane Doe accuser stated her sexual assault allegations against Jay-Z were false. She said she had never met or spoken to him and cited mental health issues. She also claimed Buzbee and her other lawyers had done little due diligence, meaning basic checks on her account, before filing Billboard.
Jay-Z's new petition argues the statement changes the record. It describes Buzbee's lawsuit as "built on lies" and says the recantation establishes good cause to reverse the dismissal or send the case back for limited discovery, a court-ordered exchange of evidence on narrow issues.
A separate federal case continues. In that action, Jay-Z accuses Buzbee and other lawyers of malicious prosecution and civil conspiracy, claims that lawyers pursued a baseless case and coordinated to do so. He has dropped the Jane Doe as a defendant in that lawsuit.
Buzbee's lawyers responded in filings on Sept. 25. They described their former client as unreliable and suggested Jay-Z had paid her to repudiate her allegations. Jay-Z has not been found liable in either matter, and no court has ruled on that payment claim.
