A state appeals court panel Wednesday put on hold a planned deposition of Bill Cosby and his former attorney in connection with a defamation lawsuit filed by ex-model Janice Dickinson, one of dozens of women who have accused the comedian of sexual assault.
The ruling was good news for Cosby – at least temporarily. It comes on the same day prosecutors in Los Angeles County said they would not file sex charges against Cosby in two cases.
Wednesday’s appeals court decision involved Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Debre Katz Weintraub’s ruling Nov. 2 that Cosby and lawyer Martin Singer had to appear for a deposition in Boston before Nov. 25, according to Dickinson’s attorney, Lisa Bloom.
Cosby appealed, and a panel of the 2nd District Court of Appeal ruled that the depositions must await the outcome of a ruling on a motion by Cosby’s attorneys to dismiss the case on free-speech grounds. A hearing on that motion is set for Feb. 9.
Bloom issued a statement in reaction to the appellate court ruling.
“We respect the Court of Appeal’s decision today essentially requiring one more round of briefing before ruling on whether we can take Mr. Cosby’s deposition at this early stage of the case,” the statement read. “We will comply and continue to fight vigorously for justice for Janice Dickinson in this and every other battle in the case.”
Dickinson’s suit alleges Cosby drugged and raped her in 1982 and later defamed her by calling her a liar in the media last year. She’s among dozens of women who have come forward to accuse the 78-year-old Cosby of drugging and sexually assaulting them.
Dickinson sued Cosby in May, claiming she has been re-victimized and her reputation has suffered because of denials by Cosby’s attorney that the comedian drugged and raped her in a Lake Tahoe hotel room more than 30 years ago.
— Wire reports