A California appeals court has ruled that Jay-Z cannot pursue an extortion or defamation lawsuit against attorney Tony Buzbee over a since-dropped legal claim that accused the rapper of raping a 13-year-old girl alongside Sean "Diddy" Combs. The ruling, issued on Wednesday 9 September by the state's Second Appellate District, upholds a lower court's dismissal and represents a significant setback for Jay-Z, who had strongly denied the allegations and vowed to fight back against the lawyer who made them.

Buzbee, who has filed numerous civil abuse cases against Combs, added Jay-Z to one such lawsuit in December 2024, alleging the pair drugged and assaulted a teenager in 2000 at an after-party following the MTV Video Music Awards; the claim was withdrawn roughly three months later, in February 2025. Jay-Z had separately sued Buzbee for extortion, arguing the lawyer fabricated the allegations to pressure him into a payout, but the appeals court found no evidence Buzbee knowingly made false statements, noting his firm believed the claims to be true. Much of Jay-Z's case rested on a recording in which the anonymous accuser reportedly recanted, but this was ruled inadmissible hearsay by a lower court, a decision the appeals panel upheld, suggesting the woman may have felt pressured by private investigators rather than coerced by Buzbee. Buzbee said he now intends to recover his legal fees and costs.