A California judge has ruled that Kris Jenner and Kim Kardashian may proceed with their defamation lawsuit against R&B singer Ray J. The court rejected Ray J's attempt to dismiss the case using an anti-SLAPP motion, setting a trial date for 2028.
The ChatGPT-backed defense against racketeering claims
In an unusual legal maneuver , Ray J attempted to defend his public statements by claiming he held a sincere belief that the Kardashian family was involved in racketeering. As reported by the source, this defense—which sought to protect his comments made during a TMZ documentary and a Twitch livestream—was bolstered by advice generated by ChatGPT.
The defendant argued that because he genuinely believed his accusations, they did not meet the legal threshold for defamation.. However, the court was not convinced that an AI-generated rationale could shield him from the legal consequences of his claims regarding the Kardashian-Jenner family.
Why California's anti-SLAPP statute failed to dismiss the suit
The judge's decision to deny the anti-SLAPP motion is a significant blow to Ray J's legal strategy. the Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation (anti-SLAPP) statute is designed to protect individuals from meritless lawsuits that aim to chill free speech, providing a fast track for dismissal.
In this instance, the judge determined that the plaintiffs, Kris Jenner and Kim Kardashian, had provided sufficient grounds to bypass this protection. The ruling suggests that the claims made by Ray J were not merely protected expressions of opinion, but were subject to deeper scrutiny regarding their factual basis.
A long road toward the 2028 trial date
While the ruling is a victory for the plaintiffs, the legal battle is expected to be a marathon rather than a sprint. The judge has scheduled the official trial to take place in 2028, a timeline that leaves several years of legal maneuvering ahead.
According to the report, Ray J's legal team is already preparing to fight this decision.. His lawyers have indicated they will appeal the ruling in an attempt to have the case dismissed much earlier than the currently scheduled trial date.
What specific evidence will prove Ray J's "actual malice"?
The core of the judge's ruling rests on the finding that the plaintiffs have enough evidence to claim "actual malice." In defamation law, this requires proving that the defendant acted with knowledge that a statement was false or with reckless disregard for the truth.
While the court has ruled that the case has merit, several critical details remain unknown. The specific evidence that the judge believes points to intentional lying has not been made public, nor has it been clarified how the defense's reliance on ChatGPT will be weighed by a jury. Furthermore, the court has not yet addressed how the specific allegations of racketeering will be parsed during the long wait for trial.
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