Jay-Z seeks rehearing in case against lawyer after accuser retracts allegations

Shawn Carter, the rapper known as Jay-Z, filed a petition on 24 September asking a California appeal court to reconsider its ruling in his civil case against lawyer Tony Buzbee and his firm. Carter also asked the court to consider new facts, following a declaration in which the woman who had accused him of sexual assault withdrew her allegations against him. [2] [4]

The appeal court had upheld the dismissal of Carter’s claims, including civil extortion and defamation, on 9 September. Carter argues that the declaration warrants a rehearing and limited evidence-gathering in the lower court, Rolling Stone reported after obtaining his petition. He wants the case to proceed to trial if that process supports his claims. [1] [4]

In a declaration filed in a separate New York federal case, the woman said Carter had never raped her, that she had never met or spoken to him, and that her accusations against him were untrue. Her sexual-assault case against Carter was dismissed with prejudice in February 2025 under an agreement that included his promise that neither he nor his agents would harass or further contact her. [1] [4] [5]

The earlier California ruling rested on legal grounds beyond whether the assault allegation was true. The court held that Buzbee’s demand letters were protected by litigation privilege and that Carter had not shown Buzbee knew public allegations implicating him were false or recklessly disregarded their truth. Buzbee said other lawyers had heard the woman’s account before he met her, and that any claim she had lied to them would be new information to him. His lawyer has also challenged the retraction, pointing to the woman’s earlier sworn testimony. [1] [4]