Roc-A-Fella Records co-founder Damon Dash has filed a summons in New York Supreme Court against his ex-wife Rachel Roy for allegedly grossly mismanaging their fashion business, Royale Etenia.
The filing on Thursday comes just days after Dash reportedly lost custody of two of his children to Roy and was subjected to a restraining order.
Dash has now fired back with claims that Roy has breached fiduciary duties, breached a contract and committed conversion arising from her handling of Royale Etenia, a fashion company the two started when they were married until 2009. Since then, Roy’s line of clothing has been in major retailers and reportedly been worn by celebrities including Michelle Obama, Kim Kardashian and Tyra Banks.
The summons by Dash is notice of a legal action with a more detailed complaint usually forthcoming. For now, the music mogul has broadly outlined allegations that Roy mismanaged the business, violated certain provisions of the company’s operating agreement and interfered with cash distributions to Dash. The claims add up to $2.5 million in asserted damage with an additional $2.5 million claim being made against another party, Topson Downs of California, accused of also grossly mismanaging the business affairs of an intellectual property company associated with Roy.
Although Dash, represented by attorney Natraj Bhushan, hasn’t fully detailed the alleged malfeasance of Roy’s handling of the fashion brand, it’s probably notable that last year, Roy brought a lawsuit against the Jones Apparel Group over a manufacturing and distribution deal.
In that lawsuit, Jones was accused of entering the deal under false pretenses and attempting to take control of Roy’s work. The lawsuit further accused Jones of attempting to sell Roy’s brands and trademarks to a third party after being acquired by a private equity firm for more than $2 billion. Last May, she was granted a preliminary injunction that prevented Jones from selling her trademarks. In July, the parties agreed to discontinue the action with prejudice — the typical sign of a settlement.
We’ve reached out to Roy’s attorney and will update if there’s any comment. [The Hollywood Reporter]
