KANYE West has finally hired legal representation months after he fired his previous attorney and seemingly ignored more than a dozen lawsuits.
The controversial star, who has been in Japan for several months, has blown off most of the lawsuits and failed to show up for depositions.
Kanye West is seen back in March in Los Angeles, California before leaving the stateCredit: Getty
Kanye West is seen at a Donda listening event at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in 2021 in Atlanta, GeorgiaCredit: Getty
He’s being sued by former employees who have accused him of everything from 𝓈ℯ𝓍ual abuse to wrongful termination.
West is also fighting other lawsuits over alleged failed business partnerships.
One of the complaints was filed by Artist Revenue Advocates LLC, which claims Ye used music composed by its talent without permission.
The company alleged in papers seen by The U.S. Sun that the music was sampled in the songs Hurricane and Moon from his Donda album, which was released in August 2021.
The suit was filed in July this year and also includes Yeezy LLC, Yeezy Supply LLC, Ox Paha Inc., among other companies linked to the star, as defendants.
The lawsuit alleges that Ye’s use of the music was a “blatant theft of musical property.”
Papers list that West and his companies were given additional time to answer the complaint, while they are set to engage in mediation on or before December 31, 2024.
New filings also show he has hired lawyers Eduardo Martorell and Jesse Belmontes to represent him and his companies.
Lawyers for Kanye did not respond to The U.S. Sun’s request for comment.
GAP SUIT
They filed an answer to the complaint in recent weeks, denying “each and every allegation” in the lawsuit.
On December 6, Artist Revenue Advocates, LLC filed a demand for a jury trial.
Parties still have until January 23, 2026, to conduct a settlement conference.
Otherwise, a trial will be held from April 20, 2026, with the last pretrial conference set for April 3, 2026, docs show.
According to In Touch, Kanye has also finally hired an attorney for his $2 million lawsuit with The Gap.
Counsel representing The Gap claimed they were contacted by Manoj Shah of the firm Brand Counsel PC claiming he is taking on the case for West and Yeezy, filings read.
The Gap was sued by a company called Art City Center in 2022.
Art City Center said the clothing company leased a commercial building in Downtown Los Angeles, which it was going to use as a store for West’s collaboration with The Gap.
But the deal with the major brand later fell apart.
Art City accused The Gap of making numerous modifications to the property, despite the lease stating no modifications could be made without approval.
Court filings show Art City was after $800,000 in damages when The Gap countersued West and Yeezy for $2 million, claiming the star and his team had control over the property and made changes without clarification.
Lawyers have accused Kanye of trying to delay the suit and avoid discovery obligations in this case by switching up lawyers.
FIRED ATTORNEY
In the new motion, lawyers for The Gap alleged, “Gap has been diligently pursuing discovery and a deposition of Ye.
“Gap served Ye with its first round of discovery in December 2023.
“Two days after serving grossly deficient discovery responses, The Yeezy Parties changed counsel.
“Once Yeezy’s new counsel was up and running, meet and confer efforts commenced relating to the outstanding documents.
“Over a period of two months, between March and May 2024, Yeezy’s counsel maintained that a search for documents was forthcoming, citing issues with locating and obtaining documents from his client.”
They continued, “During this time period, Gap also attempted to schedule a deposition of Ye. Gap noticed depositions of the Yeezy Parties for September 19, 2024, October 11, 2024, and October 15, 2024.
“However, during this time period, the Yeezy Parties again terminated their counsel.
“Although the Yeezy Parties’ CFO informed Gap that new counsel, Manoj Shah of Brand Counsel PC, was to be assigned to the case, Mr. Shah has yet to make a formal appearance.”
The situation appears to be a pattern when it comes to West being sued.
He previously had attorney Brian Blumfield represent him in the suit, and others, before firing him and moving on.
Brumfield alleges in documents that West terminated their working relationship on June 21, 2024, and had not paid him.
He did not return multiple requests for comment from The U.S. Sun.
Kanye West and his wife Bianca Censori have been in Japan for monthsCredit: X
Kanye West is still without representation in several other lawsuitsCredit: AP
Kanye West named his album after his late mother, Donda WestCredit: Getty
