Attorneys for Kevin Spacey have filed a motion for dismissal of a harassment lawsuit filed by a massage therapist who accused the actor of forcing him to grab his genitals during a private massage.
The lawsuit is separate from criminal charges of indecent assault and battery faced by Spacey for an alleged incident involving a then-teenage boy at a bar in Massachusetts. Spacey was indicted on those charges a month after the therapist’s lawsuit was filed.
In court documents obtained by TheWrap, attorneys for Spacey argue that the actor will be “severely prejudiced” if the anonymous therapist’s identity is not disclosed, and that since no harm was threatened, “the party more vulnerable to threats and privacy invasion is [Spacey] given his public profile.”
The lawsuit was first filed in California, but has been moved to federal court after Spacey’s lawyers successfully argued that the trial should not be held there, as Spacey no longer lives in the state.
Now, counsel is arguing that since it is in federal court, allowing the accuser to remain anonymous “violates the longstanding requirement of judicial proceedings being open to the public, and multiple Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, including the requirement that the Complaint identify the names of the parties and that a case be litigated by the real party in interest.”
Spacey’s team also argues that anonymity prevents the defense from receiving possible information from third parties about the accuser that are relevant to the case. The case now turns to the plaintiff’s attorneys, who must justify the accuser’s continued anonymity.
Pamela Chelin contributed to this report.