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JAY-Z and Beyoncé look less stressed after a sexual assault lawsuit that plagued their lives has been dismissed.
The Carters were spotted outside in Beverly Hills on Sunday night, February 17. Jay and Bey had just wrapped up their date night at the famed Italian restaurant Cipriani, and they were ecstatic as they headed toward the exit. TMZ caught the couple flashing huge smiles while they walked to their car. It's possible they could've been celebrating the end of Hov's legal nightmare. It was the first time both artists had been in the public eye just 48 hours after "Jane Doe" dropped her lawsuit against the rapper and Sean "Diddy" Combs.
An unidentified woman voluntarily decided to dismiss her sexual assault lawsuit against JAY-Z and Combs on Friday, February 14. In legal documents, "Jane Doe" dismissed the case with prejudice meaning the lawsuit can't be filed again. Doe claimed both moguls raped her when she was 13 at an afterparty in New York following the MTV Video Music Awards in 2000. Despite her allegations, multiple holes in her story were exposed during a bombshell interview with NBC News. She said the attack happened at a mansion 20 minutes away from Radio City Music Hall. However, there are photos of both Hov and Diddy at a nightclub that same night. She also claimed her dad picked her up from a gas station after the attack, but he said he had no memory of that happening.
"Today is a victory," Hov said in a statment. "The frivolous, fictitious and appalling allegations have been dismissed. This civil suit was without merit and never going anywhere. The fictional tale they created was laughable, if not for the seriousness of the claims. I would not wish this experience on anyone. The trauma that my wife, my children, my loved ones and I have endured can never be dismissed."
"This 1-800 lawyer gets to file a suit hiding behind Jane Doe, and when they quickly realize that the money grab is going to fail, they get to walk away with no repercussions. The system has failed."
“By standing up in the face of heinous and false allegations, Jay has done what few can – he pushed back, he never settled, he never paid 1 red penny, he triumphed and cleared his name," JAY-Z's attorney Alex Spiro told TMZ.
Before the lawsuit was dropped, JAY-Z, born Shawn Carter, took legal action against the woman's attorney Tony Buzbee. He sued Buzbee for defamation, civil extortion, and intentional infliction of emotional distress. He claimed Buzbee strategically amended Jane Doe's lawsuit to include Hov the night before the world debut of Mufasa: The Lion King starring his daughter Blue Ivy. Carter said he "felt that Mr. Buzbee was placing a gun to my head—that I either bow to his demands or endure personal and financial ruin.” He claimed Buzbee's move cost him $20 million in business contracts after brands dodged him amid the controversy, and caused his family emotional distress.