The NY Daily News is reporting that FKA twigs and Shia LaBeouf are closer to settling the sexual-battery lawsuit FKA twigs filed against her ex-boyfriend. “The parties have been engaged in productive settlement negotiations and are in the process of arranging for an early mediation,†a lawyer for FKA twigs (born Tahliah Debrett Barnett) told a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge, during a remote hearing on the case.
The musician and actress filed the lawsuit against LaBeouf in December of 2020, citing a pattern of “relentless abuse,†which included “sexual battery, assault, and infliction of emotional distress.†At the same time, FKA twigs told her story to the New York Times in the hopes of raising of awareness of the tactics abusers employ to disempower their victims. Actress Margaret Qualley thanked FKA twigs for speaking out in an Instagram post, a month after breaking up with LaBeouf. LaBeouf, through his lawyers in February 2021, denied “generally and specifically, each and every allegation contained in [Barnett]’s Complaint.â€
A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge said that they wanted to give the two parties time to mediate a settlement, setting a follow-up court date for December 15. “If you can’t [reach a settlement], when you come back in December,†they said, “I probably would give you a [trial] date in early 2023.†FKA Twig’s lawyer, Bryan Freedman, issued the following statement: “Nothing of substance has been decided and in fact, nothing sincere has been forthcoming to date to begin to remedy the abuse my client has suffered. We remain open to all avenues for Mr LaBeouf to finally take responsibility for his cruel actions.â€
Update June 17: Vulture has obtained a statement from Bryan Freedman, Twig’s lawyer. “Nothing of substance has been decided and in fact, nothing sincere has been forthcoming to date to begin to remedy the abuse my client has suffered,†the statement reads. “We remain open to all avenues for Mr. LaBeouf to finally take responsibility for his cruel actions.â€