Diddy has dropped his $60 million lawsuit against Sean John, a brand he founded, as allegations of severe misconduct continue to shadow the rap mogul.
Agreements between Diddy and fashion house GBG Sean John LLC and GBG USA Inc. have led to a voluntary dismissal of the case, including all claims and counterclaims, as of Friday (June 21).
Diddy founded Sean John in 1998 and grew the company to annual sales of about $450 million by 2016, when he sold 90 percent of the brand to Global Brands Group for around $70 million.
The relationship became rocky by February 2021. Diddy began locking horns with the company, filing multiple lawsuits against GBG for allegedly misusing his image and persona to market their products without consent.
In one instance, Diddy accused GBG of unlawfully using his image to promote a collaboration with fashion retailer Missguided. Another legal battle saw him fighting for trademark rights over the phrase “Vote Or Die,” which he claimed GBG exploited without his consent.
Diddy asserted that Sean John and GBG leveraged his name and reputation to drive sales without his approval.
Diddy secured the winning bid to buy back the floundering Sean John brand for $7.5 million after GBG filed for bankruptcy.
The dismissal, signed off in New York City, allows Diddy the freedom to pursue these claims against GBG at a later date. Nowadays, the embattled mogul faces much more serious legal issues.
His ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura sued for emotional and physical abuse spanning decades. The allegations were confirmed when a shocking video from 2016 was leaked showing the mogul dragging, kicking and stomping her in a hotel hallway.
Diddy is also facing at least seven lawsuits over allegations of sexual misconduct, abuse, and human trafficking and his mansions in Los Angeles and Miami were raided by Homeland Security as part of a broader investigation into his activities.
The fallout from these accusations has led numerous companies to sever their business ties with Diddy, including Macy’s, which dropped the Sean John line from their stores.
More recently, Diddy hired powerful lawyer Michael Tremonte of the law firm Sher Termonte.
The firm specializes in RICO cases, federal and state criminal and regulatory investigations, covering securities, insurance, and accounting fraud, antitrust violations, improper trading, market manipulation, tax fraud and money laundering.
