Michael Jackson’s former publicist filed a US$44 million lawsuit on Wednesday against the self-styled “King of Pop” for failing to pay her for her services.
Raymone Bain, who represented Jackson during his 2005 trial and acquittal on child sex abuse charges and later managed his business company, filed a breach of contract civil lawsuit against the singer in Washington.
She said in a statement that she had decided “with deep regret” to sue Jackson, describing him as someone “whom I have greatly admired and respected.”
But she said: “Unfortunately, Mr. Jackson has elected not to honor the financial obligations of our contractual relationship, despite my numerous attempts to amicably resolve this matter. I am sincerely disappointed in Mr. Jackson’s failure to honor his obligations.”
Bain, who trained as a lawyer, saw Jackson through some of the most difficult moments in his career.
She became his public voice for much of the lengthy child molestation trial in California, Jackson’s subsequent stays in Bahrain and Ireland and the financial difficulties that resulted in the sale of his Neverland Valley ranch in California last year.
In 2006 she was appointed general manager of the Michael Jackson Company, which handles his business affairs.
She said in the lawsuit that she was hired as a spokeswoman in 2003 and that from 2006, she ran every aspect of Jackson’s life including arranging housing, emergency refinancing, travel and security and scheduling meetings with record producers as the singer struggled to reestablish his music career.
Bain joins a long line of former advisers, accountants and friends who have sued Jackson in recent years over broken contracts and unpaid bills.
Most of the lawsuits have been settled out of court.
A son of the king of Bahrain reached an out-of-court settlement with Jackson in November over allegations that the Thriller singer had reneged on a recording contract and owed him US$7 million.
Jackson’s current spokesman, Dr Tohme K. Tohme, did not return calls for comment.
After years of living as a virtual recluse, Jackson recently announced a run of 50 comeback concerts in London, starting in July. All have sold out.
Bain’s lawsuit cited media reports that suggested the London concert deal, which she said she had helped to negotiate, was worth US$400 million in revenue to Jackson.
Bain said Jackson had agreed to pay her 10 percent of any deals he entered into as a result of her help but had not done so. She asked for US$44 million in damages, plus lawyers’ fees.
Thousands gathered across New Zealand yesterday to celebrate the signing of the country’s founding document and some called for an end to government policies that critics say erode the rights promised to the indigenous Maori population. As the sun rose on the dawn service at Waitangi where the Treaty of Waitangi was first signed between the British Crown and Maori chiefs in 1840, some community leaders called on the government to honor promises made 185 years ago. The call was repeated at peaceful rallies that drew several hundred people later in the day. “This government is attacking tangata whenua [indigenous people] on all
A colossal explosion in the sky, unleashing energy hundreds of times greater than the Hiroshima bomb. A blinding flash nearly as bright as the sun. Shockwaves powerful enough to flatten everything for miles. It might sound apocalyptic, but a newly detected asteroid nearly the size of a football field now has a greater than 1 percent chance of colliding with Earth in about eight years. Such an impact has the potential for city-level devastation, depending on where it strikes. Scientists are not panicking yet, but they are watching closely. “At this point, it’s: ‘Let’s pay a lot of attention, let’s
The administration of US President Donald Trump has appointed to serve as the top public diplomacy official a former speech writer for Trump with a history of doubts over US foreign policy toward Taiwan and inflammatory comments on women and minorities, at one point saying that "competent white men must be in charge." Darren Beattie has been named the acting undersecretary for public diplomacy and public affairs, a senior US Department of State official said, a role that determines the tone of the US' public messaging in the world. Beattie requires US Senate confirmation to serve on a permanent basis. "Thanks to
UNDAUNTED: Panama would not renew an agreement to participate in Beijing’s Belt and Road project, its president said, proposing technical-level talks with the US US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday threatened action against Panama without immediate changes to reduce Chinese influence on the canal, but the country’s leader insisted he was not afraid of a US invasion and offered talks. On his first trip overseas as the top US diplomat, Rubio took a guided tour of the canal, accompanied by its Panamanian administrator as a South Korean-affiliated oil tanker and Marshall Islands-flagged cargo ship passed through the vital link between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. However, Rubio was said to have had a firmer message in private, telling Panama that US President Donald Trump