Bill Cosby Will Settle Defamation Lawsuits Filed by 7 Women

Bill Cosby and seven women who filed defamation lawsuits against him have agreed to a settlement, the Associated Press reports. 

The plaintiffs claim Cosby defamed them when he accused them of lying about his sexual misconduct allegations. Now, court documents registered in Springfield, Massachusetts indicate a settlement has been reached. The 81-year-old is serving a 3 to 10-year prison sentence in Pennsylvania for a different sexual assault case.

The Massachusetts judge who is supervising the defamation case still has to approve the settlement, which will be confidential. It’s uncertain if Cosby will abandon his counterclaims against the women. These plaintiffs—including one who recently passed away—are from a group of dozens of women who have implicated Cosby in sexual misconduct allegations.

The women—including Tamara Green, Therese Serignese, and Barbara Bowman—involved in the defamation suit say the disgraced comedian labeled them as liars after they took their allegations public. He’s denied their defamation and sexual misconduct claims, and is also appealing his Pennsylvania conviction.

The women’s attorney, Joseph Cammarata told AP on Friday that “each plaintiff is satisfied with the settlement.” He also revealed that his clients would try to depose Cosby if he refuses to drop his counterclaims, which “accuse the women of harming his reputation through their accusations,” the AP writes.

Cosby’s wife, Camille had been directed to give a deposition in the case in 2016. However, the Cosbys’ lawyer tried to cite spousal privilege as a reason why Camille couldn’t testify. While the judge agreed that marital conversations were confidential, the women’s lawyers reminded the judge that Camille acted as Cosby’s business manager during their marriage.

The case had previously been postponed due to Cosby’s Pennsylvania criminal case, which consisted of a 2017 trial that resulted in a deadlock and his ultimate conviction during a 2018 retrial.