Prosecutor requests dismissal of lawsuit

A Recording Academy member who claimed former Grammy Awards head Neil Portnow drugged and raped her in a New York hotel in 2018 has asked the court to dismiss her lawsuit.

The move is the result of a threatened court order that would force the woman to reveal her identity publicly.

In a letter sent to the court on Saturday, the woman said she was concerned about her privacy and safety. She also pointed to a run-in with her attorney over communication issues and a “misrepresentation” that could have a “significant impact on the case,” although he rejected Portnow’s request to require her to use her real name just days before had contested her voluntary request for dismissal.

On Monday, Jeffrey Anderson asked to resign as her attorney in the case. He cited “irreconcilable differences” over the fact that the woman had filed a letter with the court without his knowledge asking that her case be dismissed.

In a lawsuit filed in November in New York State Supreme Court, the woman accused Portnow of sexual assault that the Recording Academy “aided and abetted” to “protect her reputation and silence her and other women in the music industry.” “. The lawsuit was filed under a New York law that suspended the time limit on claims of sexual misconduct allegations for one year.

However, the case was transferred from a state court to federal court, which is typically more lenient in allowing plaintiffs suing sexual assault to have an anonymous trial because the woman is presumed to be a South Korean citizen, and the alleged damages in the case exceed $75,000. The Recording Academy is also based in California.

Since the federal court had jurisdiction over the case, Portnow, who declined to comment, requested that the woman disclose her name. He emphasized that the allegations in the lawsuit are “particularly toxic, not only because they are false, but also because they are contradicted by a trove of emails and texts that demonstrate plaintiff’s warm feelings toward Mr. Portnow after the incident.” alleged incident and also extended to her application. “Marriage and request for his assistance in writing a letter of recommendation for the plaintiff’s immigration application.”

Edward Spiro, Portnow’s attorney, pointed to sexual assault lawsuits against Kevin Spacey, Harvey Weinstein and Tupac Shakur, in which courts ruled that the public had an interest in the accusers’ identities because the allegations were made against public figures be.

Anderson, the woman’s attorney, said his client should be allowed to use a pseudonym because publicly identifying her would put her “at risk of retaliation, personal and professional,” and expose her to “emotional distress, embarrassment and ridicule.” ” He also argued that it was in the public interest to allow her to continue the case anonymously.

“Forcing survivors of sexual violence to reveal their identities is counterproductive to the purpose and intent of the Legislature in enacting the Adult Survivors Act under which Plaintiff asserts her claims,” he wrote. “Although there is a public interest in accountability for this type of harm, knowing the identity of the plaintiff does not help advance that interest. In fact, it would serve to discourage survivors from making claims.”

Despite the rebuttal, the woman filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit “without prejudice,” meaning it can be refiled if necessary. She said her lawyers told her an order would be issued forcing her to reveal her name and that she would “face harm or retaliation.”

In a letter, Anderson wrote: “Now that the defendants have taken your case to federal court, where your anonymity and name can no longer be protected, you and we face the possibility of further serious harm,” the E report said -Email from a woman to U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres.

She noted that Anderson, who did not respond to a request for comment, told her last month that he was stepping down as her attorney. The woman also said Anderson “pursued the case without my consent,” citing his request to challenge the disclosure of her identity.

Anderson asked the court on Monday to allow him to withdraw from the case, saying that “the attorney-client relationship has deteriorated beyond repair.” He disputed the characterization of the statements in the woman’s letter.

In 2002, Portnow was named executive director of the Recording Academy. The lawsuit suggested he would step down as head of the institution after his contract expired in 2019 amid self-inflicted scandals. That included him saying in an interview after the 60th Grammy Awards in New York City in 2018 that women needed to “step up” if they wanted to be better represented in the music industry, and the termination of his successor, Deborah Dugan.

The lawsuit alleged that Dugan was fired by the Recording Academy because she refused to bring Portnow back as a consultant after she was told about the alleged rape.