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A man who unsuccessfully sued Cardi B After his giant back tattoo, which was unwittingly photo-shopped onto one of her albums covers, has agreed to reimburse the superstar $350,000 for legal fees that he spent to defeat his lawsuit.
Kevin Brophy’s attorneys told a federal district judge Monday (12th June) that he would reimburse the money Cardi had spent on her lawyers and end his efforts at revitalising the case. He will also waive his right to appeal in the future.
Why would this man do that? Possibly because Cardi’s lawyers were gearing up to formally demand that he repay her attorneys’ fees — a prize to which she was potentially eligible after beating his accusations in court. Cardi’s expensive team of attorneys could have earned even more than the $350,000 she was entitled to.
The two sides in the Monday filing hinted at the threat of a fee request from Cardi’s side.
Attorneys from both sides declined to comment when the agreement was reached. Billboard Monday is a holiday.
Brophy claimed he was “devastated”, “humiliated”, and “embarrassed” by Cardi’s cover in 2017. Gangsta Bitch. The image showed the then-rising actress taking a sip of an extensive beer and staring into the camera while holding a male’s head as he appeared to perform oral sexual activity on her.
Brophy had a large tattoo on his back. The model was the one who appeared in the picture. Unknown to Cardi, a graphic designer freelancer had entered “back tattoos”, found one (Brophy’s), and superimposed it on the model’s back.
Brophy claimed in his lawsuit that Cardi, and other people involved in the cover, had used his likeness and violated his privacy rights by presenting him in an “untrue light”, which was “highly offending.” Cardi’s lawyers dismissed the claims as “sheer fantasies” and “vastly inflated,” arguing no one could have identified a man who was relatively unknown based on his back.
Cardi defended herself during a four-day trial held in October. Brophy’s lawyer examined Cardi. A. Barry Cappello, and things repeatedly got heated between the two — so much so that at one point, the judge cleared the jury, told Cappello he had “totally crossed the line”, and threatened to declare a mistrial.
Cardi was cleared of all Brophy’s claims by the jury after the trial. Brophy asked the judge in December to overturn the verdict due to a lack of evidence. The judge refused this motion. Brophy filed a motion for a new trial in January, claiming that the actor “engaged in theatricals” while testifying and denied him a fair trial.
Brophy has agreed to “waive irrevocably” all rights to challenge the verdict in court. In turn, Cardi’s legal team will waive the right to request formal attorney’s fees.
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