Kesha will not be able to seek the cost of her legal fees from Dr. Luke if she wins the lawsuit her former producer brought against her.
Kesha can't claim legal fees
The 34-year-old pop star has been locked in a defamation case with the record producer for years, after he sued her in 2014 when accused him of physical, sexual, and emotional abuse.
And although in June a judge granted the 'Rainbow' singer's request to use a recently-strengthened free speech law to go after Luke for the money she's spent defending herself, an appeal hearing on Thursday (10.03.22) overturned the ruling.
The appeals court noted that when the law was amended in 2020, it “did not specify that the new legislation was to be applied retroactively”, and therefore, cannot be used by the 'Praying' hitmaker.
Kesha's lawyers have vowed to "promptly" appeal the new decision.
They said in a statement: “Today’s opinion is manifestly erroneous and contrary to the conclusion reached by approximately 20 other courts. We will promptly seek Court of Appeals review.”
A judge previously concluded that Kesha published a false statement when she texted Lady Gaga to allege that Dr. Luke also raped Katy Perry.
However, since then New York has introduced new legislation that's intended to protect free speech, and Kesha is seeking to use it as part of her counterclaim.
Although a judge previously ruled that Dr Luke was a private figure, meaning he wasn't required to prove that Kesha made false allegations with a malicious intention, that decision went to an appeal.
And in June 2021, a judge confirmed the recently-established free speech law does apply to the case and Luke needs to prove that Kesha acted with malice.