This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.
And Finally Artist News Business News Labels & Publishers Legal
Lawyers finally locate Kanye West to formally drop him as a client
By Chris Cooke | Published on Tuesday 7 February 2023
The lawyers who were working for Kanye West on a copyright case in relation to the ‘Donda 2’ track ‘Flowers’ have finally formally dropped the rapper as a client. Completing those formalities took some time because West proved rather tricky to locate.
Law firm Greenberg Traurig was one of the plethora of West’s business partners that sought to cut ties with the rapper last year once he started spouting ever more controversial and offensive statements.
The judge overseeing the ‘Flowers’ copyright litigation granted Greenberg Traurig’s motion to withdraw from the case at the end of November, but also ordered the law firm to personally serve West with a ‘withdrawal order’ that stated it is no longer representing him in the case.
Serving that paperwork proved to be a challenge, because West had changed his address and phone number, and all the representatives the lawyers use to talk to had likewise cut their ties with the musician.
Last month the lawyers told the judge they were struggling to find West to serve the papers and asked if they could formally part company with the rapper through less conventional channels. One proposal was that they’d take out adverts in two LA newspapers telling West they were no longer working on the ‘Flowers’ case.
The judge wasn’t so keen on that idea and suggested the lawyers hire a private investigator or undertake some more rigorous database searches to locate West. But, it turns out, shortly after the judge made those suggestions Greenberg Traurig finally tracked West down.
According to Billboard, Nina D Boyajian from the law firm told the judge last week via a legal filing: “On 18 Jan 2023, an attorney based in California contacted my firm advising that he would be representing Ye on some of his legal matters”.
“During the course of several emails and a phone call with this attorney, I requested that he coordinate personal service of the order on Ye”, she added. “On 1 Feb 2023, the attorney referenced above emailed me the executed certificate of service”.
“The address at which Ye was personally served is not one that is publicly affiliated with Ye or his businesses, but one that Ye nonetheless frequents”, the filing added. “The location also appears to be primarily used by persons and entities not affiliated with Ye or his businesses”.
So, all’s well that ends well I guess. Until this new attorney wants to break ties with West and the process starts all over again.
