Dr. Luke scores victory in legal battle with Kesha, singer to pay more than $373K
A judge ruled in favor of music producer Dr. Luke in his years-long legal battle with singer Kesha, according to court documents.
New York Supreme Court Justice Jennifer Schechter ruled Thursday that Kesha defamed Luke, born Lukasz Gottwald, by texting Lady Gaga with claims that he raped Katy Perry.
In the ruling, the judge cited Perry's denial of the claim.
"There is no evidence whatsoever that Gottwald raped Katy Perry or that Katy Perry, whose sworn testimony is unrefuted, must not be believed," the document reads.
Defamation claims surrounding Kesha's accusations that Luke raped her were not fully resolved.
"This court cannot decide... who should be believed... That decision is for the jury," the document states.
The judge also refuted Kesha's legal team's claims that Luke is a public figure, which would make it harder for him to claim defamation.
"Although (Gottwald) may be well known in music-industry circles, he has never been a household name... The only reason Gottwald has any public connection to the issues raised in this lawsuit is because they were raised in this lawsuit," the document reads.
The court also ordered Kesha to pay $373,671.88 to Luke's company KMI due to late royalty payments.
In a statement provided to USA TODAY Friday by spokesperson Rebecca Shapiro, Kesha's legal team said they plan to appeal the court's rulings.
“Judge Schecter issued rulings today on motions for summary judgment in the Dr. Luke litigation. We disagree with the Court’s rulings. We plan to immediately appeal," the statement read.
In a joint statement to USA TODAY Friday, spokesperson Christine Lepera and Luke's legal team said the producer "looks forward to the trial of his case where he will prove that Kesha's other false statements about him were equally false and defamatory."
The statement continued, "Kesha abandoned her meritless case against Dr. Luke more than three years ago. The only remaining lawsuit is Dr. Luke's case against Kesha for defamation and breach of contract. Dr. Luke is pursuing this lawsuit to seek recovery for the serious harm Kesha's false accusations of rape have caused Dr. Luke, his family and his business."
Kesha first filed a lawsuit against Luke in 2014, accusing him of sexual abuse and emotional distress.
Dr. Luke countersued for defamation and breach of contract. Kesha dropped her assault lawsuit against the producer in California, but has not backed down from her accusations and is still litigating her contract in New York.
Despite the singer's legal team's efforts to keep her testimony sealed, Perry's 2017 deposition in Luke and Kesha's legal battle was released in 2018, showing Perry unequivocally denying that Luke raped her.
A deposition from that case released in 2019 revealed that Lady Gaga had a fiery confrontation with Dr. Luke's legal team in 2017 in which she defended Kesha and shamed his attorneys over the way they treated the "Tik Tok" singer.
In a statement to CBS in 2018, Luke denied any wrongdoing through his lawyer Christina Lepera.
"Dr. Luke never raped, drugged or abused Kesha. Even though Kesha Sebert testified in 2011 in a videotaped deposition that Dr. Luke had never drugged her, or made any sexual advances towards her, in 2014 she filed a baseless lawsuit against Dr. Luke. She falsely accused him of raping and drugging her in 2005," the statement read.
USA TODAY has reached out to Luke and Kesha for comment.
Contributing: Carly Mallenbaum
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kesha defamed Dr. Luke, judge rules in years-long legal battle