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LA judge tosses actress Ashley Judd's lawsuit against Harvey Weinstein

By Clyde Hughes
American film producer Harvey Weinstein is seen in Manhattan Court for a hearing on December 20. Pool photo by Alec Tabak/UPI
1 of 2 | American film producer Harvey Weinstein is seen in Manhattan Court for a hearing on December 20. Pool photo by Alec Tabak/UPI | License Photo

Jan. 10 (UPI) -- A federal judge in Los Angeles has dismissed a sexual harassment lawsuit against Harvey Weinstein by actress Ashley Judd.

Judge Philip Gutierrez ruled in a 13-page opinion that a new California state law that includes directors and producers specifically in assault claims cannot be applied in Judd's case.

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Judd, one of the first actresses to speak publicly about Weinstein, sued him last year, saying he dissuaded filmmaker Peter Jackson from casting her in his Lord of the Rings trilogy. Jackson said he was "fed false information" about Judd by Weinstein after meeting her to discuss a role.

In September, the judge ruled Judd could not make her claim because she didn't have a professional relationship with Weinstein when she said the harassment occurred in the mid-1990s.

Judd's attorneys had argued that amended state law should apply to their client's case retroactively and that Gutierrez should allow the case to proceed.

The actress said during a hotel meeting, Weinstein asked for a massage and invited her to watch him take a shower. When she refused, Judd said Weinstein began an effort to damage her career.

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Last month, New York Supreme Court Judge James Burke declined to dismiss five criminal counts against Weinstein connected with two separate incidents, including rape and sexual assault.

Accuser Lucia Evans said Weinstein forced her to perform oral sex on him in 2004 and another woman accused him of rape in 2013. He has pleaded not guilty to all charge. Monday, Weinstein's attorneys asked Gutierrez to delay Judd's defamation and retaliation cases until after the New York criminal trial.

"Weinstein should not be forced to decide between being prejudiced in this civil litigation, if he asserts his Fifth Amendment privilege, or being prejudiced in criminal litigation if he waives that privilege in this case," his attorneys wrote Gutierrez, The Hollywood Reporter reported.

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