Bob Dylan: Musician’s lawyers seek ‘monetary damages’ after collapse of sexual abuse allegation

Lawyers for Bob Dylan have revealed they are seeking “monetary damages” from an opposing legal team that accused the singer of sexual abuse 57 years ago.

The lawsuit came from a woman, known only as JC, and was filed in August 2021. In it, she alleged that Dylan groomed her and gave her drugs and alcohol before sexually abusing her when she was 12, in 1965.

A spokesperson for Dylan told The Independent at the time: “The 56-year-old claim is untrue and will be vigorously defended.”

The woman initially claimed that the abuse took place at his apartment in Manhattan’s Chelsea Hotel over six weeks in April and May of 1965, before expanding the timeframe in which the alleged abuse took place to “a period of several months in the spring of 1965”.

The lawsuit was eventually dropped in July.

Now, according to a report by Billboard, the singer’s lawyers are now pursuing sanctions, citing “brazen misconduct”.

Orin Snyder, who leads Dylan’s legal team, wrote to a federal judge to say that Daniel W Isaacs and Peter J Gleason, who were the woman’s lawyers, “should not have brought this action – accusing [Dylan] of a heinous crime – if they did not intend to responsibly litigate it”.

Before the lawsuit was scrapped, lawyers representing Dylan accused the woman’s team of deleting key text messages and emails relevant to the case. It was claimed that the woman’s lawyers were refusing to comply with court orders to provide evidence.

At that point, Dylan’s lawyers asserted that the suit was a “lawyer-driven sham” while stating it was “outrageous that it was ever brought in the first place”.

In a letter filed on Tuesday (9 August), Isaacs responded to Dylan's team's points, saying the lawsuit was “brought in good faith and with the intent of responsibly litigating the matter”. He blamed the evidence issues on the “recalcitrance” of his client – apparently, she refused to hand over key materials despite repeated requests.

“At no point did either Mr Gleason or I wilfully withhold discovery or engage in discovery misconduct,” he wrote. “We attempted to comply as best we could given the circumstances, including plaintiff suffering PTSD, which was exacerbated when her identity was illegally made public following the commencement of this action.”

The amount of money Dylan’s lawyers are seeking is currently unknown.

If you have been raped or sexually assaulted, you can contact your nearest Rape Crisis organisation for specialist, independent and confidential support. For more information, visit their website here.