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Attorneys representing high-profile lawyer Tony Buzbee have fired back after the woman who accused Jay-Z, whose real name is Shawn Carter, of rape fully recanted her allegations, with Buzbee’s lawyers calling her new sworn statement “bought-and-paid-for.”
The response came after the unnamed accuser filed a sworn declaration admitting that her 2024 claims, alleging she was assaulted after the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards, were false.
The woman, identified as Jane Doe in court documents, told a judge that Jay-Z never raped her or engaged in inappropriate conduct toward her. She also said her previous claims were made amid mental health struggles and accused her former lawyers of failing to properly verify her allegations.
Attorneys at the Sheppard law firm, representing Buzbee, have asked the judge to strike the declaration, calling it “irrelevant and inflammatory” and arguing that it contradicts the woman’s earlier sworn statements.
The original sexual assault lawsuit was dropped in February 2025. Jay-Z has continued pursuing federal claims against Buzbee and others, including allegations of civil conspiracy and malicious prosecution.
Meanwhile, a separate California lawsuit filed by Jay-Z against Buzbee was dismissed on September 9, after an appeals court upheld the ruling. The court said there was no evidence Buzbee knew the allegations against Jay-Z were false when they were made.