Report: Kesha gains a key victory in Dr. Luke defamation legal battle
As per the New York Court of Appeals, Dr. Luke’s team will now have to prove the singer acted with “actual malice” when she accused him of rape in 2014.
Today (June 13), the highest New York court handed down a crucial ruling in Kesha‘s legal battle with Dr. Luke (Lukasz Gottwald), who will attempt to prove at an upcoming trial that she defamed him with accusations of rape in 2014. According to a Billboard report, the court ruled that Kesha is legally a public figure, meaning that Gottwald’s legal team will need to prove she acted with “actual malice” and knew that her claims were false.
However, the whole decision didn’t go in Kesha’s favor; the court hasn’t supported her argument that these allegedly defamatory statements were shielded by so-called privileges. 20 of the 25 statements will be fair game for jury trial under Gottwald’s claims. Following almost eight years of litigation, the trial in Dr. Luke’s lawsuit is scheduled to begin on July 19. Kesha released her new Rick Rubin-produced album Gag Order last month.