Takeoff's Estate Settles Sexual Assault Lawsuit Two Weeks Before Trial

The estate of the rapper Takeoff has reached a settlement in a sexual assault lawsuit brought by a woman identified in court papers as Jane Doe. Lawyers for both sides told a Los Angeles court on Thursday, 12 November, that the case will not go to trial.

An estate is the legal body that handles a person's affairs after they die. In this case, the estate stands in for Takeoff as the defendant. The trial had been set to begin on 1 December in Los Angeles with jury selection, the stage at which potential jurors are chosen to hear a case.

Rolling Stone reported that lawyer Tamar Yeghiayan told Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Huey P. Cotton that a dismissal, the formal ending of a lawsuit, will be filed before 1 December. The judge agreed to turn the 1 December date into a status hearing, a short court appearance to check on how a case is progressing.

Jane Doe filed her lawsuit in August 2020. She alleges that Takeoff raped her at a house party in Encino, California, in June 2020. These allegations were never tested before a jury.

Takeoff gave sworn testimony on video in a deposition on 27 September 2022. Five weeks later, on 1 November 2022, he was fatally shot. Prosecutors declined to file criminal charges over Jane Doe's rape allegation.

For Jane Doe, the case ends without a trial. For the estate, it ends with a settlement agreed before a jury was ever seated. A formal dismissal is still to come, and the case will be closed when the court receives it.