Jimmie Allen's former manager agrees to drop sexual assault lawsuit, stands by accusation
Jimmie Allen's former manager agreed to drop her lawsuit that accused the country singer of sexually assaulting her.
In a proposed order filed Thursday and obtained by the Nashville Tennessean, part of the USA TODAY Network, both Allen and the woman, identified in filings under the pseudonym "Jane Doe," agreed to drop their claims against each other. That won't be finalized until U.S. District Judge William Campbell enters an order of dismissal, which typically happens soon after both sides agree to drop a lawsuit.
One of the woman's lawyers, Beth Fegan at Chicago firm FeganScott, confirmed the decision.
"FeganScott can confirm that Jane Doe and Jimmie Allen have reached a mutual accord as to Plaintiff’s claims and Mr. Allen’s counterclaims and have agreed to dismiss them. The decision reflects only that both parties desire to move past litigation," the firm said in a statement provided to The Tennessean.
In a second statement sent Monday, Fegan reiterated that "my client stands by her statements in the complaint, that Allen raped her while she was incapacitated and sexually abused her while she was his day-to-day manager."
"Jane Doe entered into a settlement agreement with Jimmie Allen to avoid the trauma of reliving her abuse over the course of a painful trial," the statement read in part.
The woman sued Allen in May 2023, alleging that he regularly sexually abused and harassed her while she was his day-to-day manager from 2020 to 2022. She also sued the artist management company that hired her, Wide Open Music, and its founder, Ash Bowers, accusing him of knowingly failing to protect her after learning about the alleged abuse. The woman is not dropping her claims against Wide Open Music or Bowers.
Jimmie Allenaccused of rape by former manager; country star says it was 'consensual'
In a statement provided in May through his attorney, Allen admitted he and the woman had a relationship but denied anything was non-consensual. Bowers told The Tennessean in an email at the time that the lawsuit was the first he heard about Allen's alleged abuse and that Wide Open Music immediately terminated its relationship with Allen after the former manager made the allegations.
In response, Allen, 38, countersued the woman in July 2023 over the lawsuit and ensuing media coverage, accusing her of defamation, invasion of privacy and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
In a March 1 update, lawyers reported that the woman served a settlement demand on Allen's lawyers in late January, followed by a response and reply from both sides in February. At the time of that update, lawyers for Allen and the woman had discussed mediation but not yet set a date. Bowers and Wide Open Music, on the other hand, "do not believe that settlement negotiations will be fruitful" until the court rules on their motions to dismiss the woman's claims against them, the update stated.
Jimmie Allen lawsuit from second accuser ongoing
Less than a month after the first lawsuit was filed, a second woman sued Allen and accused him of sexually assaulting her in a Las Vegas hotel room and recording the encounter without her knowledge in July 2022. Allen then countersued the woman, saying she took his phone and gave it to police. Allen accused her of conversion, which is similar to theft but is a civil claim rather than a criminal one. That lawsuit is ongoing.
That lawsuit came shortly after Allen and his former wife Alexis Marie Allen announced their separation. It marked a tumultuous period for the country singer, who in 2021 was named the Country Music Association's new artist of the year and the Academy of Country Music's new male artist of the year.
Nearly immediately after the allegations were publicized, Allen's label BBR Music Group dropped him and United Talent Agency stopped representing him, while CMA Fest removed Allen from its June lineup.
Evan Mealins is the justice reporter for The Tennessean. Contact him at [email protected] or follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @EvanMealins.
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence, RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline offers free, confidential, 24/7 support to survivors and their loved ones in English and Spanish at: 800.656.HOPE (4673) and Hotline.RAINN.org and en Español RAINN.org/es.