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Lizzo’s legal team is pushing back against what they claim is a “meritless” discrimination and wrongful termination lawsuit against the Grammy-winning singer’s touring company, seeking a full dismissal before heading to trial.
In court documents filed on Friday, July 18 and obtained and reviewed by PEOPLE, the singer’s lawyers, including Martin Singer, claimed that plaintiff and former wardrobe assistant Asha Daniels is a “brazen liar,” asserting that she’s “disgruntled,” has “an inflated ego” and is exacting “personal vendettas” against the 37-year-old star, her production company, her wardrobe manager Amanda Nomura and her tour manager Carlina Gugliotta.
Singer also alleged that “Daniels is not a victim of discrimination or harassment” and that she has “an unquenchable thirst for free publicity,” per the docs.
As previously reported by PEOPLE, Daniels, 37, first filed the complaint in September 2023, alleging that they made racist and fat-phobic remarks and denied her medical care, leading to anxiety and PTSD. She also claimed that she experienced a “culture of racism and bullying” while working on costumes during the European leg of Lizzo’s Special Tour.
In response to Friday’s filings, attorney Ron Zambrano — who is representing the plaintiff and is a partner and Employment Litigation Chair at West Coast Employment Lawyers — shared a statement to PEOPLE. “We fully expected the defense to file a motion to dismiss. We also fully expect the judge to deny the motion, and we look forward to taking this case to trial and winning,” he said.
“The motion is meritless, and the defense knows it, but their modus operandi is to treat all lawsuits as having no grounds to proceed by repeatedly blaming the victim. It won’t work,” Zambrano continued.
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This is not the first time Lizzo’s team has sought to dismiss Daniels’ lawsuit. In December 2023, her lawyers filed a request, claiming that her complaint was “meritless and salacious.” In documents obtained by PEOPLE at the time, Lizzo’s attorney alleged that Daniels “failed to perform the work that she was assigned and, eventually, just played hooky and refused to show up for work.”
A year later, in December 2024, a federal judge ruled that Lizzo herself could not be sued as an individual, dismissing “all seven causes of action against Lizzo and said Daniels can’t try again,” Rolling Stone reported, noting that “Big Grrrl Big Touring Inc. remains a defendant.”
According to Friday’s filings, attorneys for Big Grrrl Touring asked for summary judgment in order to put an end to what they claimed is a “meritless case” against the company.
“BGBT terminated Daniels because she could not work productively with [her manager], was inexperienced, did not want to continue with the Tour, and failed to comply with safety regulations, Tour protocol and [her manager]’s instructions,” Singer wrote in the filing, per the outlet.
He added, “Despite purportedly being traumatized by alleged harassment and discrimination, she offers no specific information to support her claims or a single witness or document to corroborate her absurd allegations.”
According to Billboard, if the latest motion is denied, a jury trial is slated for later this year.
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The latest legal dispute involving Lizzo comes after she first faced sexual harassment and assault lawsuits from three former backup dancers — Crystal Williams, Arianna Davis and Noelle Rodriguez — in August 2023.
Per court documents obtained by PEOPLE at the time, they claimed that Big Grrrl Touring “treated the Black members of the dance team differently than other members.” In an Instagram post, Lizzo denied these allegations.
In June, the “About Damn Time” singer filed an appeal to overturn a 2024 ruling that allowed the lawsuit from her backup dancers to move forward, dubbing it an “attack” on her “First Amendment right to perform her music and advocate for body positivity,” per Billboard.
According to the publication, claims — including an allegation where Lizzo fat-shamed one of her dancers — were thrown out. However, the overall case was allowed to move forward.
In a July 2025 cover story for Women’s Health, Lizzo said she “got very paranoid and isolated” after initially being “blindsided” when the complaints were first filed against her and her team.
“I used to walk into glam and be like, ‘Oh, let me tell you about this crazy s— that happened last night!’ I couldn’t do that anymore,” she continued.
Added Lizzo: “I pushed everyone away. I wasn’t even talking to my therapist. I wasn’t present. I wasn’t open. I wasn’t myself anymore.”
