Music executive Diddy secures legal win as singer Dawn Richard’s lawsuit is thrown out

Diddy has secured a legal victory after Dawn Richard’s civil lawsuit against him was dismissed by a federal court, according to court documents obtained by TMZ.

A federal judge threw out all of Richard’s claims, and all but one of them cannot be refiled. The court found that the vast majority of her allegations were brought after the statute of limitations had expired. However, the judge ruled that Richard could refile her remaining claim, which relates to copyrights, in New York state court.

The former Danity Kane and Diddy-Dirty Money member sued Diddy in September 2024, claiming he became upset with her years ago when she advised his then-girlfriend, Cassie, to leave him due to alleged abuse Richard said she had witnessed.

Richard also alleged that she endured days without sleep because of Diddy’s demands, which caused her to lose weight and break out in rashes. She further accused Diddy of touching her breasts and buttocks at a recording studio.

At the time, Diddy’s lawyer dismissed Richard’s allegations. Attorney Erica Wolff told TMZ: “In an attempt to rewrite history, Dawn Richard has now manufactured a series of false claims all in the hopes of trying to get a payday, conveniently timed to coincide with her album release and press tour.”

She added: “If Ms. Richard had such a negative experience with ‘Making the Band’ and Danity Kane, she would not have chosen to continue working directly with Mr. Combs for Dirty Money, nor would she have returned for the ‘Making the Band’ reboot in 2020 or agreed to be featured on ‘The Love Album’ last year.” Richard was one of the witnesses in Diddy’s criminal trial.