Nelly has asked a New York federal court to order attorney Precious Felder Gates to repay more than $78,000 in legal fees stemming from a copyright suit filed by former St. Lunatics member Ali, arguing the case was so baseless that sanctions are warranted. The request follows a ruling that found the suit should never have advanced past its initial stages.
Ali filed the complaint in 2023, accusing Nelly of withholding credit and royalties for Country Grammar, the rapper’s 2000 debut album that became a commercial breakthrough. He alleged that Nelly misled his former collaborators and manipulated them into believing they would be compensated for their work.
Nelly denied any wrongdoing and said the claims were decades late, falling well outside the Copyright Act’s three-year statute of limitations. Ali dropped the lawsuit in April.
Nelly Wants Money Back From Lawyer Who Filed “Country Grammar” Lawsuit
U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert W. Lehrburger ruled last month that Gates continued pressing the case despite clear legal barriers. He wrote that it should have been “patently obvious” by November that the suit was barred, yet Gates “doubled down” and forced Nelly to incur unnecessary legal expenses defending a claim he argued lacked any legal footing.
On Wednesday, Nelly’s attorneys submitted a fee request totaling $78,007 for 142 hours of work by three copyright litigators. Attorney Kenneth Freundlich wrote that the rates were consistent with market standards in New York and that the hours were justified once Gates refused to withdraw the complaint.
“These rates are reasonable,” Freundlich said in the filing, emphasizing that Nelly should not bear the cost of opposing a suit the court deemed defective.
Gates will be allowed to argue for a reduced amount before the court sets a final figure. She told Billboard that she still believed sanctions were “unwarranted.” She added: “Acted with the honest conviction that our client’s claims merited judicial consideration.”
Her statement signals continuing disagreement over responsibility for a case that quickly fell apart.
The St. Lunatics’ complaint began to unravel shortly after it was filed. Three members—Murphy Lee, Kyjuan, and City Spud—told the court they never authorized the lawsuit. They did not intend to sue Nelly. Ali pursued the case alone before withdrawing it.
The sanction request now turns the abandoned suit into a potential financial penalty. Nelly is seeking reimbursement for defending Country Grammar against allegations he says should never have reached federal court.
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