Sean “Diddy” Combs has had enough of what his legal team describes as a “decades-long onslaught of frivolous and vexatious lawsuits” filed by Michigan inmate Derrick Lee Cardello-Smith.
The Hip-Hop mogul also asks the court to impose restrictions barring the inmate from filing additional lawsuits without judicial approval and to have Cardello-Smith cover his mounting legal expenses.
Filed by Cardello-Smith, who is serving a decades-long sentence for rape, the lawsuit alleges that nearly 30 years ago, Diddy assaulted him in Michigan and demands over $400 million in damages.
The case gained significant attention when a judge issued a $100 million default judgment and prohibited Diddy from selling his Los Angeles mansion after failing to appear for a hearing.
That judgment, however, was later vacated after Diddy’s legal team successfully argued the inmate had altered key court documents to obtain the order.
“This barrage of fabricated claims must come to an end,” said Diddy’s attorney, David Fink, in court documents. “Plaintiff’s frequent filings clearly indicate he has no intention of stopping his meritless attacks.”
According to Diddy’s legal team, Cardello-Smith has filed at least 173 federal lawsuits over the years, with many dismissed as baseless.
The inmate has repeatedly attempted to draw celebrities, such as Jennifer Lopez, into his claims, even listing Lopez as a planned witness in this particular case.
Lawyers for Diddy argue the accusations have no basis in law or fact, labeling them “fantastical fabrications.”
The ongoing legal battle took another unusual turn with Cardello-Smith’s claim that Diddy had visited him in prison to negotiate a settlement—a statement that prison records contradict.
Additionally, he alleged that he served legal documents to Diddy years before filing the lawsuit, another assertion that Diddy’s attorneys have described as a fantasy.
Diddy’s legal team is requesting harsh measures to address what it sees as an abuse of the court system.
In addition to seeking dismissal of the current case, they have called for sanctions under federal law, including a permanent injunction requiring Cardello-Smith to obtain court approval before initiating any future lawsuits.
This type of court order, referred to as a prefiling injunction, is typically used to curb serial litigants with a history of filing frivolous claims.
“Plaintiff has caused significant legal fees and costs to be incurred by Mr. Combs,” Fink stated in the court filings, adding that the lawsuit represented a “calculated abuse” of legal resources.
Diddy’s attorneys also seek monetary sanctions to recover those legal fees, emphasizing the strain imposed by Cardello-Smith’s history of unfounded legal actions.
Due to his history of repeated, meritless claims, the filings highlighted that Cardello-Smith has been barred in multiple courts from submitting lawsuits without prepayment of fees.
Diddy’s legal team argued this pattern demonstrates a need for similar restrictions in the current case.
Through this motion, Diddy’s lawyers aim not only to bring this case to a close but also to prevent future legal obstacles that might arise from what they describe as an “ongoing pattern of harassment” by Cardello-Smith.
The federal court has not yet ruled on Diddy’s motion, leaving the next chapter of the protracted legal drama uncertain.
