Jay-Z fights to keep $119K bankruptcy debt from being wiped out
Jay-Z says Lillie Coley should still owe him $119,000 despite her bankruptcy, citing court findings tied to alleged harassment.
By Poppy Nakagawa · Culture Writer
2 min read
Jay-Z is pushing a bankruptcy court to keep a $119,000 debt alive, arguing Lillie Coley should not be allowed to erase money she was ordered to pay him, according to court documents obtained by TMZ.
Coley is the grandmother of Rymir Satterthwaite, who has claimed for years that Jay-Z is his father. TMZ reports that Jay-Z has fought those claims in court and has now filed papers in Coley’s ongoing bankruptcy case.
According to TMZ, Jay-Z is asking the court to rule that the $119,000 award cannot be discharged in bankruptcy. His filing says the debt stems from a judge’s finding involving Coley’s “fraudulent statements and misrepresentations designed to harass and target” him.
Why does Lillie Coley owe Jay-Z money?
TMZ reports that Jay-Z’s legal team says Coley has targeted him for a decade through court filings, online activity and public statements. His lawyer characterizes the filings as unfounded and says the conduct was part of a yearslong harassment campaign.
Jay-Z claims in the court papers that he has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees responding to Coley and Satterthwaite. He also says every lawsuit Coley brought against him has been dismissed, according to TMZ.
The new fight is about whether Coley’s bankruptcy can wipe out the $119,000 she was ordered to pay. In bankruptcy, certain debts can be discharged, meaning the person no longer has to pay them. Courts can also decide that some debts survive bankruptcy, including debts tied to fraud findings.
Jay-Z’s position, as reported by TMZ, is that the debt falls into a category that should survive because of the judge’s findings about Coley’s statements and conduct.
What is Coley saying in court?
Coley has asked the court to dismiss Jay-Z’s petition, TMZ reports. Her argument is procedural: she claims Jay-Z has not satisfied several required steps for the court filing to move forward.
The case remains active, and the court has not made a final ruling on Jay-Z’s request, according to TMZ.
Satterthwaite has long claimed that his late mother, Wanda, had a relationship with Jay-Z and that he was born as a result. Jay-Z has contested the paternity claims in court, TMZ reports.
The bankruptcy dispute now puts the long-running paternity-related legal fight into a new lane: whether Coley can use bankruptcy to shed the six-figure debt, or whether Jay-Z can keep pursuing the money he says she owes.
This story draws on original reporting from TMZ.