Jay-Z asks Judge to keep Criminal Past and Net Worth out of Civil Trial

Shawn Carter known as Jay Z has asked a federal court judge to bar testimony about his criminal past – and current high-flying lifestyle – from an upcoming civil trial.
His lawyers say none of that should figure into his current court case, where he and Tim (Timbaland) Mosley are defending themselves in a civil suit charging they swiped a song sample for the Jay Z smash
“Big Pimpin.”
The suit was brought in 2007 by a relative of an Egyptian composer named Baligh Hamdi, who said the tune ripped off Hamdi’s 1960 song “Khosara, Khosara.”
Timbaland has said in court papers that he thought he’d bought the rights.
Despite how long the case has been dragging through the court system, Hamdi’s lawyers didn’t mention they wanted to bring up the records of Jay Z and the other defendants in
the case until last month.
“Plaintiff has not identified the purpose of offering Defendants’ criminal histories, let alone articulated how the probative value of such evidence substantially outweighs their prejudicial effect. Nor can he: the criminal record is entirely irrelevant and poses an overwhelming risk of biasing the jury against Defendants,” Jay Z’s lawyer said in a recent court filing.
He noted that “none of the defendants have been convicted of a crime within the last ten years,” and said that “Any evidence or argument relating to any of the Defendants’ criminal histories should thus be excluded.”
He also urged the judge to shoot down any inquiry into his client’s “wealth and resources.”