FKA Twigs calls out Shia LaBeouf's request for more financial records
FKA Twigs' lawyers are accusing Shia LaBeouf's legal team of "improperly seeking" the British musician's private medical and financial records in their long-running civil lawsuit.
During a pre-trial discovery conference on Monday, "The Crow" actress' team argued that the information "has no bearing on the issues in this case," according to court documents obtained by USA TODAY.
In December 2020, Twigs, 36, born Tahliah Barnett, brought the lawsuit against her ex-boyfriend, alleging repeated physical, emotional and mental abuse during their nearly year-long relationship. The lawsuit is set to go to trial in October.
Twigs' lawyers called the request for her complete financial information from 2017 on — including total revenues for her work in "The Crow," her advertisements for Calvin Klein and her January 2022 mixtape, "Caprisongs" — a "significant invasion" of her privacy.
The "Megalopolis" actor "seeks the information based on a far-fetched theory that (Twigs') level of income is correlated to her emotional distress," Twigs' lawyers write. They claim LaBeouf, 38, is seeking to make the argument that if Twigs "is working and making income, then she does not suffer from emotional distress. This is simply not true," the filing continues.
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"While my client was led to believe that LaBeouf was on a path of taking responsibility and working a program, it is clear he intends his pattern of continuing to abuse the victim," Twigs' attorney Bryan Freedman said in an emailed statement to USA TODAY Friday. "Any suggestion that FKA Twigs' emotional distress should be discounted because of any career success is preposterous and discounts the idea that victims should have hope for the future."
The statement continues: "Logically, without the trauma that she has suffered I can only imagine the level of success she would have achieved by now. It's unfortunate my client had to be triggered yet again unnecessarily by LaBeouf and his team."
Lawyers for both Twigs and LaBeouf contradicted each other in statements about how the judge ruled; USA TODAY has not yet obtained the judge's ruling in the matter.
The filing claims Twigs' team has already produced "1,300 pages of documents" and that LaBeouf's lawyers' request for her entire medical history also goes "well beyond the injuries that are actually at issue."
In a Monday conference filing from LaBeouf's legal team, his lawyers argue that Twigs has not provided enough evidence to support her demand for $10 million in damages, "including lost wages, lost professional opportunities and emotional distress."
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Twigs "alleges that the release of her album was delayed due to mental anguish, and as a result she lost over $1 million not finishing her album prior to touring. She has not provided support for this alleged delay, the reasons behind it, or that she would have earned an extra $1 million for the album's earlier release," the filing continues.
The actor's lawyers also question the cost of her medical bills in relation to her emotional distress, noting her "medical bills total $4,100 to a therapist."
The singer "appears to have increased her profile in the years after her relationship with Shia and her career appears to be thriving," the filing continues, citing her projects since their relationship, including her critically acclaimed 2019 album "Magdalene" and its international tour.
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Why is FKA Twigs suing Shia LaBeouf?
The singer and dancer is suing the "Transformers" actor for sexual battery, assault and infliction of emotional distress. She accuses the actor of "relentless abuse" and asserts LaBeouf knowingly gave her a sexually transmitted disease, according to her lawsuit.
Besides Twigs, the lawsuit claims LaBeouf has abused Karolyn Pho, a stylist and ex-girlfriend, and others. After the singer's lawsuit was filed, Sia lent her support to Twigs, claiming the "Honey Boy" actor "conned me into an adulterous relationship claiming to be single."
At the time, LaBeouf responded to the allegations in an email to The New York Times, saying he was "not in any position to tell anyone how my behavior made them feel."
"I have no excuses for my alcoholism or aggression, only rationalizations," he continued. "I have been abusive to myself and everyone around me for years. I have a history of hurting the people closest to me. I'm ashamed of that history and am sorry to those I hurt. There is nothing else I can really say."
LaBeouf and Twigs dated in 2018 and 2019, after meeting on the film "Honey Boy."