Suge Knight’s Lawyer Claims Fraud In $130 Mil Suit

According to a report from the Los Angeles Times, a lawyer for Death Row CEO Suge Knight has filed a legal motion that alleges fraud in the $130 million judgement against the music mogul from 2005.

Suge's attorney Dermot Givens, who also represented Knight in the original case, is seeking to have the $130 million judgment set aside because of new evidence of fraud perpetrated by the plaintiff, singer Lydia Harris, and her imprisoned husband, Michael Harris. The original suit, filed in 2002 by Lydia Harris, claimed that she co-founded Death Row Records with Suge and that he had cheated her out of millions of dollars over the years. While the suit did not make it to trial, a judge ordered Suge to pay $130 million because his attorneys violated various court rules and failed to make certain information available to the prosecution.

At the time of the original suit, Lydia Harris was married to Michael Harris, who is currently serving a 28-year sentence for selling crack and attempted murder. Back in 1996, Michael Harris threatened to sue Death Row and Interscope, claiming he had financed the label while behind bars. As a result, he signed an out-of-court settlement for $300,000, which released both companies from future claims.

The new motion, which is expected to be the focus of a hearing in a Los Angeles court today, alleges that Lydia Harris hid from the court the fact that she had filed for bankruptcy five years earlier, at which point she never claimed any ownership of Death Row. It also claims that, in reference to the Harris' recent divorce proceedings, both Lydia and Michael testified that Michael was the true party of interest in her suit against Suge. "I was the one making all major client decisions on behalf of the marital estate, even though Lydia was technically named the plaintiff in the matter," Michael Harris said. "Lydia simply accepted whatever decision [her lawyer] and I made jointly."