A
judge has dismissed a $100 million breach of
contract lawsuit filed against Whitney Houston
by an entertainment company that her late
father founded. Superior Court Judge Francine
Schott found that Kevin Skinner, who claims to
be the current owner of John Houston
Entertainment, had refused to provide
information to the pop diva's attorney.
Schott dismissed the lawsuit April 5, but her
ruling wasn't made public until Tuesday.
John
Houston, who died in February 2003, filed the
lawsuit in September 2002 in Essex County,
claiming his daughter failed to pay his
company for representing her interests
beginning in fall 2000. The lawsuit said the
singer was in financial trouble and facing
marijuana possession charges in Hawaii until
her father's company stepped in.
Skinner continued the lawsuit after John
Houston's death, but Bryan Blaney, Whitney
Houston's attorney, said Skinner refused to
sit for a deposition. Blaney also questioned
whether Skinner was John Houston's business
partner and said he wouldn't turn over
documents that proved his claims or showed
that he had legal standing to continue the
lawsuit.
Blaney also said John Houston Entertainment is
no longer a viable business and that Houston's
estate had no interest in pursuing the
lawsuit.
Skinner told The Star-Ledger of Newark (N.J.)
that he withdrew the lawsuit to avoid harming
Whitney Houston, who recently entered a drug
rehabilitation center. He declined further
comment after being told that court records
made it clear the lawsuit had been dismissed.
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Resource(s):
Associated Press
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LAWSUIT
AGAINST WHITNEY DISMISSED