Harvey Weinstein reaches tentative $44 million deal to settle sexual misconduct lawsuits
If the deal is approved $30 million would go to Weinstein's victims and creditors that did business with his movie studio. The other $14 million would go towards paying the legal fees of former board members of the Weinstein Company that were named in the lawsuit.
Lawyers for Harvey Weinstein filed a Hail Mary motion to dismiss two of the five remaining counts against the beleaguered producer.
Defense attorney Arthur Aidala says in the papers filed in Manhattan Supreme Court that one of two counts of predatory sexual assault should be dropped because they are based on the same alleged crimes.
Aidala also argues that count five, the alleged rape of a longtime lover at a Manhattan hotel in 2013, should be tossed.
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He says that the complex legal method prosecutors used to get around the statute of limitations assumed that Weinstein was a resident of Connecticut.
He was, in fact, a resident of New York and the tolling provision, which stops the clock when Weinstein travels out of state, does not apply, the papers argue.
Weinstein’s prior attorney, Ben Brafman, filed a motion to throw out the same counts more than eight months ago, which Justice James Burke denied.
But Aidala says that his arguments fall under a different legal theory.
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Brafman did successfully get one count dismissed, which stemmed from then-fledgling actress Lucia Evans’ allegation Weinstein forced her to perform oral sex on him in 2004.
Weinstein also faces allegations he forcibly performed oral sex on production assistant Mimi Haleyi in 2006.
Meanwhile, Weinstein’s sex assault case is headed to trial Sept. 9 and his legal team is crumbling.
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In a letter exclusively obtained by The Post, lead counsel Jose Baez asked the judge to let him off the case. He said that Weinstein had threatened to sue his firm and wasn’t paying him the agreed-upon fee.
Just a month earlier, Harvard professor Ron Sullivan withdrew from the defense team, caving to pressure from students who objected to his representation of the disgraced producer.
Brafman quit in January after a blowup with the fallen Hollywood mogul about legal strategy.
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Burke has yet to rule on whether he’ll let Baez withdraw.
This article originally appeared on Page Six.
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