Kanye West had a mansion in Malibu. But Tony Saxon, who worked as a project manager on the site, sued the artist in 2023 for employment violations, non-payment of services and disability discrimination.
Now Ye is taking counter-legal action, claiming that his former assistant was wrong to place a lien on his former property.
In his lawsuit, which he filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, the Chicago rap star also targeted West Coast Trial Lawyers, a law firm that represented Tony.
The complaint states that “Tony improperly placed an invalid lien on the property while simultaneously launching an aggressive publicity campaign designed to put pressure on Ye, chill future transactions, and force payment for disputed claims already pending in court.”
By “aggressive publicity campaign”, Ye refers to a statement that Ronald Zambrano, his ex-project manager, made to Business insider“If anyone wants to buy Kanye’s house in Malibu, they’re going to have to deal with us first. That sale can’t happen without Tony getting paid first.”
“These statements were intended to create public pressure and hinder Plaintiffs’ ability to sell and finance the property by falsely conveying that Defendants had an assessed, enforceable right to block a transaction and divert sales proceeds,” the lawsuit reads.
A mechanic’s lien — which Tony posted a month later, when Ye put the mansion up for sale — totals $1.8 million, preventing the owner from selling the property until an unpaid contractor, laborer or supplier is compensated. A real estate foreclosure sale can also occur if the party is still not paid.
But last year, the Los Angeles Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Donda hitmaker, awarded him attorney fees and removed the lien on the property.
It’s worth noting that Kanye bought the Malibu mansion in 2021 for $57.3 million. But he sold it in 2024 for $21 million, a huge loss.
