A lawyer representing the rapper formerly known as Kanye West has recently requested the dismissal of a lawsuit brought by former teachers at his private Christian school, Donda Academy.
In court documents filed this week, the lawyer, Gregory Suhr, argued that the claims depicting the academy as a “dystopian institution” designed to cater to Kanye West’s personal preferences were untrue and unfair to the school’s current staff and students. “None of it is true and the allegations do a disservice to the Donda Academy’s current staff and students and their parents who will attest to their positive experience.”
The lawsuit, initially filed in April by two former teachers, Cecilia Hailey and Chekarey Byers, alleged wrongful termination in retaliation for reporting code violations.
A third teacher was later added to the lawsuit.
According to the former teachers, the Southern California school, Donda Academy, presented concerning conditions. They asserted that the institution lacked janitorial services and medical staff, and imposed restrictions on the use of forks, jewelry, and clothes that were not black or designed by Ye.
The teachers, who are Black, further alleged racial discrimination, inadequate response to severe bullying, and a claim that students were exclusively served sushi. Additionally, they claimed that their paychecks frequently fell short by substantial amounts, up to $2,700.
According to this week’s filing, Donda Academy will vigorously defend itself against the allegations made by Byers and Hailey. The filing states that Kanye West, also known as Ye, is only subject to the inaccurate wage claims, which the filing dismisses because he has no involvement in Donda Academy’s policies, practices, and procedures concerning employee pay and wage statements.
The filing criticizes the plaintiffs for including a baseless guilt-by-association theory in their complaint, suggesting that they did so to attract media attention and create settlement pressure. The filing asserts that such tactics are commonly employed against Ye, given his fame as an artist and businessperson.
The filing submitted by Ye’s lawyer describes the claims as “improper” and requests the judge to dismiss them. However, the lawyer did not address the allegations made by the third teacher, stating that they are not connected to Ye.
Lawyers representing Donda Academy have not provided any comments in response to the requests for their input. In a court filing last month, they characterized the lawsuit as “fatally uncertain, ambiguous, and unintelligible.”
Ron Zambrano, the lawyer representing the former teachers, criticized the request for dismissal, stating that it is unfounded. He argued that Ye’s assertion of having no involvement in Donda’s policies and procedures regarding employee pay is absurd since he holds positions as the school’s CEO, secretary, and CFO.
Zambrano expressed confidence that the truth will prevail and emphasized that Ye himself is to blame for the situation. Zambrano also represents a third plaintiff who joined the lawsuit recently, alleging that she was terminated after parents complained about the absence of books in her class.
