Houston-based attorney Tony Buzbee has reportedly been barred from practicing law in New York as a judge dismisses his client’s sexual assault lawsuit against rap moguls JAY-Z and Diddy.
RELATED: JAY-Z Granted Permission To File Dismissal Motion In Jane Doe Sexual Assault Case With Diddy
On Friday (February 14), Tony Buzbee dropped his sexual assault lawsuit against JAY-Z, born Shawn Carter, and Diddy, born Sean Combs. The lawsuit, filed by an anonymous Jane Doe, accused the two hip-hop moguls of sexually assaulting the woman in 2000 when she was just 13 years old.
However, the attorneys representing Jane Doe voluntarily dropped the case, filing a dismissal in a New York court. The court document, reviewed by Variety, states, “Jane Doe hereby gives notice that the above-captioned Action is voluntarily dismissed, with prejudice.” This means the lawsuit cannot be refiled, effectively closing the chapter on the accusations as they were presented.
As Tony Buzbee dropped his sexual assault lawsuit, JAY-Z and Diddy both spoke out. JAY-Z even filed a lawsuit against Buzbee. He asserts that Buzbee’s actions were a calculated attack, designed to cause personal and professional harm.
He also claims that the timing of the lawsuit was strategic. The filing arrived right before his daughter, Blue Ivy Carter‘s big movie premiere for ‘Mufasa: The Lion King‘. Hov claims in court documents that Buzbee aimed to force him to choose between supporting his daughter and avoiding negative press. He states:
“I felt that Mr. Buzbee was placing a gun to my head that I either bow to his demands or endure personal and financial ruin.”
Houston Attorney Tony Buzbee Reportedly Barred From Practicing Law In NYC Amid JAY-Z And Diddy Lawsuit Dismissal
After Tony Buzbee dropped his sexual assault lawsuit against JAY-Z and Diddy, the Houston-based attorney is now reportedly being denied the ability to practice law in New York City. According to independent legal reporter Meghann Cuniff and journalist Loren Lorosa, Buzbee is facing some legal issues himself.
On Saturday (February 22), Cuniff wrote on X:
“His lawsuit against JAY-Z is dismissed and not coming back. And now, Tony Buzbee is trying to ensure he can keep litigating his other lawsuits against Diddy because his admission application in the Southern District of New York was denied.”
RELATED: Tony Buzbee Drops Sexual Assault Lawsuit Against JAY-Z And Diddy
With accompanying screenshots, Cuniff adds, “As the order says, Buzbee can seek ‘pro hac vice’ admission, and that’s what he’s doing now in the Diddy lawsuits. Or trying to at least.” “Pro hac vice” is a practice in common law jurisdictions whereby a lawyer, who has not been admitted to practice in a certain jurisdiction, is then allowed to for a particular case in that jurisdiction.
Adding additional screenshots of legal documents, Cuniff says:
“The judge in this particular lawsuit (McCrary v. Combs) ordered Buzbee to apply for pro hac vice admission after she figured out what was going on. The Court has been informed that Mr. Buzbee is not admitted to practice in the Southern District of New York.”
Cunniff also notes that she believed “pro hac vice” was used for “out-of-state attorneys who are only doing one case, not dozens and dozens and dozens.”
RELATED: JAY-Z Files Lawsuit Against Attorney Tony Buzbee For False Rape
SDNY Committee Reportedly Bars Houston Attorney Tony Buzbee From Practicing Law In NYC Amid JAY-Z And Diddy Lawsuit Dismissal
Additionally, journalist Loren Lorosa reported similar claims about Tony Buzbee being denied access to practice law in NYC. Lorosa wrote on X:
“Attorney Tony Buzbee — an attorney who has been recently linked to civil suits against both JAY-Z and Diddy — has been denied the ability or ‘admission’ to practice in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.”
Lorosa attached a screenshot of the filing and continued to speak in a second tweet. She wrote, “This decision was made by the committee on grievances for the SDNY NOT a judge.” She clarified, “I wanted to correct my use of ‘judge’ here.” Lorosa continued:
“By definition: The Committee on Grievances for the Southern District of New York is a committee that investigates complaints of attorney misconduct. The committee is appointed by the Appellate Division of the State Supreme Court. But their denial still stands on how he must now move forward in any SDNY court — if granted admission to even do that.”
Lorosa also answered another X user. The person asked if this was the reason why Tony Buzbee had his JAY-Z and Diddy sexual assault lawsuit dismissed. She replied:
“I can’t factually say yes to that. I would assume that Buzbee may [have] known this was coming and knowing he had to fight back against the committee’s denial that was coming he had to make a decision to save the other cases by just folding his hand on Jay-Z’s x Puffs voluntarily .. but again I don’t know that to be fact at all that’s just my assumption. When Buzbee responds to the grievances committee we might be able to answer that.. but I can’t answer it as of now. I’m just very surprised at this because it’s a super beginner mess up.”
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