A small but important win in the trial against her former producer, Dr. Luke – the current facts.
American singer Kesha has won a major defamation battle against her former producer Dr. Luke before the trial. In a month, the current defamation trial between 36-year-old Kesha Rose Sebertund and her former songwriter and producer Lukasz Gottwald, aka Dr. Hatch. Now the New York Supreme Court of Appeals has ruled that Dr. Luke classified as a “public figure”.
According to reports from The Hollywood Reporter, the Court of Appeal ruled on Tuesday (June 13) that the producer, as a “public figure,” must now prove that Kesha acted in “actual bad faith” — that is, the Knowing that their statements were false or made with reckless disregard for the truth. This decision overturns a previous ruling that Dr. Luke is a private person despite being world famous and working with the biggest names in the business.
The court also ruled that Kesha may file a counterclaim under the 2020 amendment to New York City’s Free Speech Protection from Fridious Claims Act. According to the “Anti SLAPP” law, she can recover part of her court costs.
However, the verdict is not entirely in the singer’s interest. It has been found that most of their allegedly defamatory statements are not “protected by privileges” that immunize the behavior when it is reasonably related to litigation. 20 of the 25 disputed statements would now be heard in court.
More about the case
The nearly decade-long legal battle centers on Kesha’s efforts to get out of her record deal with Dr. Luke’s “Kasz Money” to exit. After unsuccessfully trying to renegotiate the terms of the deal, the singer sued the producer for allegedly raping her when he signed her nearly 20 years ago.
She requested an injunction to terminate her contracts with Dr. Luke, who is known as one of the most successful producers of the 21st century, having worked on hits by Avril Lavigne, Katy Perry and Miley Cyrus, among others. A New York appeals court stunned back in 2021 by ruling that Dr. Luke is not to be classified as a public figure.
The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press (Reporters’ Committee on Freedom of the Press) and news organizations such as The Daily Beast then submitted a “Friend of the Court” letter. With this they supported Kesha that Dr. Luke, as a public figure, had to prove actual malice.
The ruling, which also found that the singer released a false allegation when she wrote Lady Gaga that he also raped Katy Perry, was a major win for the producer, as private individuals only have to prove negligence, despite New York defamation standards 2020 were changed.
Kesha updates
Kesha’s current album is called GAG ORDER. It is the American singer-songwriter’s fifth studio album and was released on May 19, 2023 by Kemosabe Records and RCA Records. Kemosabe was introduced by Dr. Luke was founded and is now owned by Sony Music Entertainment. It’s her last album on the label – and with the deal she signed when she was 18.