Michael Jackson accuser Wade Robson’s lawsuit against star’s estate thrown out by judge
A JUDGE has dismissed Michael Jackson accuser Wade Robson's lawsuit against the late King of Pop's estate.
The suit, that Robson began in 2013, was thrown out by Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Mark A. Young who found no legal basis for Jackson's two entertainment corporations to protect the youngster.
Robson, a 38-year-old choreographer, had claimed that after meeting Jackson at aged five a seven-year period of abuse began. He appeared in the stars music videos and even recorded music on his label.
Throughout his life Jackson adamantly denied all allegations of child abuse.
His lawsuit stated that as Jackson's employee, his entertainment companies - MJJ Productions and MJJ Ventures - had a legal duty to care for his welfare, similarly to how a school would be responsible for protecting its pupils from staff.
Robson's shared his detailed accusations in the HBO documentary "Leaving Neverland", alongside James Safechuck, 43, who had a similar close relationship with Jackson - that he also claims was plagued by abuse.
But Judge Young found the corporations were controlled by Jackson - and that they had no ability to exercise control over him.
"There is no evidence supporting plaintiff’s contention that defendants exercised control over Jackson," he explained in court docs.
"The evidence further demonstrates that defendants had no legal ability to control Jackson, because Jackson had complete and total ownership of the corporate defendants."
The ruling announced on Monday echoes that of Safechuck's, who launched a similar lawsuit that was dismissed last October on the same grounds by Judge Young.
Safechuck had claimed the two entertainment corporations ""were created to, and did, facilitate Jackson's sexual abuse of children".
But the pair's attorney, Vince Finaldi, vowed to appeal the decision after slamming the ruling for having "fatal flaws".
He said in a statement, "If allowed to stand, the decision would set a dangerous precedent that would leave thousands of children working in the entertainment industry vulnerable to sexual abuse by persons in places of power."
The basis for both Robson and Safechuck's claims was that due to them both working with Jackson when they were minors, the groups - who were set up by the artist to run his career - had a duty of care to protect them.
But the California judge told the claimants that corporations cannot be direct perpetrators and they were not directly responsible for causing emotional distress.
The Jackson estate has vehemently denied the claims that he abused either of the boys, and launched their own lawsuit against HBO for airing the documentary, which is now in private arbitration.
Jackson's estate attorney Jonathan Steinsapir said of the Robson ruling: "Wade Robson has spent the last 8 years pursuing frivolous claims in different lawsuits against Michael Jackson’s estate and companies associated with it.
"Yet a judge has once again ruled that Robson’s claims have no merit whatsoever, that no trial is necessary."
The men's cases were previously thrown out by a judge who said they had waited too long, but a new Californian law gave them more time to launch a case there.
Most read in News
They were barred from suing the late pop superstar’s estate but wanted to prove the allegations and that show bosses knew or should have known.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Safechuck alleges Jackson abused him hundreds of times when he was a child, in horrific allegations recounted in the powerful HBO doc.
Robson also claims the Thriller singer preyed on him as a child and catalogued a string of sex assaults in the TV show.