Harvey Weinstein is seeking to postpone his civil lawsuit with Ashley Judd until his criminal sexual assault trial is finished.
The Double Jeopardy star launched the legal action in April (18), accusing the disgraced producer of blacklisting her and sabotaging her career after she refused his sexual advances.
In her suit, she referred to comments made by Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson in late 2017, when he confessed to dropping Judd from casting consideration for his 2001 fantasy blockbuster based on remarks Weinstein had allegedly made about her lack of professionalism.
Weinstein vehemently denied trying to derail Judd's career, and in August (18), he filed a motion asking for the actress' case to be dismissed, declaring the accusations are based on unfounded speculation.
However, his bid was shot down in September (18), allowing Judd to continue with her defamation and interference case, with a trial date set for January, 2020.
According to The Blast, Weinstein is now trying to have the case put on hold and if he can't, he insists he will invoke his fifth amendment right against self-incrimination. Weinstein's lawyers are arguing his testimony in the civil lawsuit could affect his criminal sexual assault case in New York.
"It is well-settled that a civil action should be stayed pending a related criminal action involving similar conduct where the defendant risks incrimination," court documents read. "Here, given the overlap between the criminal and civil matters, a stay is warranted as Weinstein is unable to respond to the factual allegations of Plaintiff's First Amended Complaint, respond to or participate in the discovery process, or otherwise litigate this matter, without invocation of his constitutional rights against self-incrimination."
Weinstein has been accused of sexual misconduct from over 50 women, including Judd, since allegations of his bad behaviour hit headlines in exposes in October, 2017. He has denied all allegations of non-consensual sex.
