Nelly is requesting the court to penalize St. Lunatics member Ali Jones for what his legal team considers an unfounded and expensive legal maneuver.
In response to Ali Jones dropping a copyright lawsuit regarding songwriting credits from Country Grammar, Nelly has retaliated in court by seeking sanctions against Jones for what his lawyers view as a frivolous legal pursuit.
After quietly withdrawing his lawsuit on April 10 without providing an explanation or confirming a settlement, Ali Jones, the last remaining St. Lunatics member pursuing legal action against Nelly, abandoned the case, as reported by Digital Music News.
Initially filed in 2023, the lawsuit accused Nelly of failing to appropriately acknowledge and compensate his longtime collaborators for their contributions to the rapper's breakthrough album, Country Grammar.
Jones alleged that Nelly, also known as Cornell Haynes Jr., did not fulfill his promises of giving proper credit or compensation to the plaintiffs.
However, the legal action lost steam quickly when other St. Lunatics members, Murphy Lee, Kyjuan, and City Spud, publicly distanced themselves from the case, claiming they were not involved or in agreement with the legal proceedings.
Now, Nelly is urging the court to hold Jones and his legal team responsible for what Nelly's lawyers describe as an unnecessary and groundless legal maneuver.
Nelly's legal representatives stated in a court filing, "Plaintiff’s counsel succeeded in its frivolous campaign aimed at forcing [Nelly] to spend money defending Plaintiff’s ridiculous time-barred claims. The Court is respectfully requested to retain jurisdiction and set a briefing and hearing schedule [for potential sanctions]."
In the dismissed lawsuit, Jones asserted that he and fellow St. Lunatics members were deprived of proper recognition and royalties for their contributions to Country Grammar, which sold over 10 million copies and propelled Nelly to Hip-Hop stardom.
Despite the lawsuit being dropped, Nelly's legal team is pushing for the court to enforce financial penalties on Jones and his legal representatives due to the costs incurred during the defense.