Suge Knight Hit With Lawsuit For Unpaid Legal Fees

01/27/2003 5:00 PM, Yahoo! Music
Yves Erwin Salomon

(1/27/03, 5 p.m. ET) -- Imprisoned Tha Row Records CEO Marion "Suge" Knight and his Tha Row Records (formerly Death Row Records) were hit with a breach-of-contract lawsuit on Thursday (January 23). The law firm of McPherson & Kalmansohn filed the suit for unpaid legal fees.

The law firm alleges that Knight and Death Row Records failed to pay the company legal fees in excess of $550,000 for services rendered from 1992 to 1999. The plaintiffs are bringing the following causes of action: breach of written contract, breach of oral contract, promissory estoppel, fraud, negligent misrepresentation, unfair competition, and quantum meruit.

McPherson and Kalmansohn maintained that they were promised a payment of $200,000 by former Death Row Records attorney David Kenner. The law firm was also allegedly cajoled into continued representation of Death Row Records when an imprisoned Knight also promised payment.

In related news, a default judgment of $25.5 million was entered against Death Row Records last month. The lawsuit was brought by Daz Dillinger for breach of contract in 2001. Knight is hoping to have the order vacated on the grounds of lack of proper representation. Tha Row's former legal counsel, Theresa Bingham, maintains that she wasn't a productive employee and did not adequately prepare for the case due to the murders of two co-workers. A judge will hear the motion to vacate on January 28.

Knight is still in jail awaiting a parole hearing. He was arrested on December 23 for allegedly violating the terms of his parole by associating with gang members. If found guilty, Knight could end up back in prison for a year.

-- Yves Erwin Salomon, New York

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