(Bloomberg) — A former Russian model asked a judge to throw out a lawsuit against her by Leon Black in which the Wall Street billionaire claims that she conspired with a group of lawyers and spin doctors to destroy him professionally and personally.
Black, the co-founder of Apollo Global Management Inc., filed the suit against the woman, Guzel Ganieva, and her lawyers, Wigdor LLP, last year in Manhattan federal court after she had sued him in state court for defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, gender-motivated violence and retaliation. Black said in April that he made payments for years to keep a consensual affair with Ganieva secret.
Read More: Leon Black Accused of Flying Model to Epstein Home for Sex Acts
The suit against Ganieva, Wigdor and other unidentified defendants carries a tantalizing claim: an unnamed “funder” — someone who can take on Black and knows how his world works — is behind the curtain, working to help Ganieva, her lawyers and media specialists to smear Black.
In her suit, Ganieva claimed Black “sexually abused her for years, bullied her into silence with a coercive non-disclosure agreement, and then defamed her when she finally summoned the courage to speak publicly about Black’s conduct,” according to court papers she filed Friday.
Black and Ganieva have denied each other’s allegations.
A lawyer for Black didn’t immediately respond to phone and email messages seeking comment.
(Updates with background on dispute)
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