The actress/singer was countersuing her former driver Hakob Manoukian for trying to extort her out of $2.8 million.
- Dec 27, 2012
AceShowbiz - A judge has dismissed Jennifer Lopez's extortion lawsuit against her former driver Hakob Manoukian. The singer sued Manoukian for $20 million back in August for demanding $2.8 million from her and threatening to leak supposed secrets about her to the media and law enforcement.
Manoukian launched a lawsuit against Lopez earlier this year, claiming he was unfairly fired. He said Lopez's manager Benny Medina had publicly berated at him by saying he was not "presentable" and had struggled with his English.
The chauffeur also claimed that he had left his post at a private limo company when Lopez and then-husband Marc Anthony said they wanted him as full-time driver. In addition, Manoukian stated in his lawsuit that he was promised he would earn $72,000 plus "production pay". He said he was still owed $200,000.
Lopez said in her countersuit that Manoukian's role was diminished after he inappropriately tried to take over control of her security team and obtain a higher salary.
However, Manoukian, via his attorney, struck back by filing a motion to dismiss Lopez's countersuit. He said she was trying to punish him for filing a legitimate employment lawsuit against her. The judge agreed with the driver and dismissed the case. Meanwhile, his lawsuit against Lopez is still pending.
