Kevin Liles is hoping to dismiss the sexual assault lawsuit filed against him by a former Def Jam employee earlier this year.
Filed in New York Supreme Court in February, an anonymous woman claims that Liles began sexually harassing her in 2000, a year after she began working for Def Jam as an executive assistant to the general manager. She says things escalated in 2002 when Liles forced himself on top of her and raped her after she rebuffed his sexual advances.
But according to new documents obtained by TMZ, Liles is asking for permission to file a motion to dismiss on the basis that it’s past the statute of limitations.
For his part, he also says the claims in the suit are “entirely false” and that Jane Doe didn’t provide enough specific details for the case to proceed.
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Def Jam and its parent company UMG are also named as defendants in Doe’s suit, with the woman claiming that they “not only knew or should have known” about Liles’ “propensity to commit the aforementioned crimes of violence,” but also enabled his alleged behavior.
Liles has vehemently denied the allegations and hit back at the lawsuit, saying in a statement to TMZwhen they dropped: “I absolutely deny the outrageous claims reported in the press this evening.
“I wish I could share a more detailed response to this slander, but this is the first I’ve heard of this claim and the anonymous accuser’s attorney shared the lawsuit with gossip influencers and media outlets before it was even posted by the court, so my attorneys and I have not seen the actual lawsuit.”
He added: “After nearly 40 years of service to our culture, I’ve intentionally built a reputation for doing things the right way, treating people the right way, and empowering women. It is a shameful reality that these lies spread so freely.
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“My attorneys and I will fully clear my name, and when we are successful, this anonymous accuser and her attorney will face a defamation lawsuit and every other available legal consequence. These allegations will not derail my mission to be of service to our community, and focus on the greater good and greater God.”
The woman’s lawyer, Lucas B. Franken, said in his own statement that they expect other women to come forward with similar allegations.
Liles departed Def Jam in 2004 and then served as executive vice president of Warner Music Group in 2009. He later co-founded 300 Entertainment — responsible for acts such as Young Thug, Gunna and Megan Thee Stallion — before stepping down from the company last year.
