A Nevada woman lost in her attempt before a US court to force the Portuguese international star Cristiano Ronaldo to pay him millions of dollars on top of the $375,000 she received for her silence after accusing him of raping her in Las Vegas in 2009.
Federal Judge Jennifer Dorsey dismissed the lawsuit as a sanction against the woman’s attorney, Leslie Mark Stovall, for acting “in bad faith” and using “stolen” confidential documents, facts that according to the judge irremediably contaminated the case.
Dorsey said in his 42-page ruling that dismissing a case out of hand with no possibility of refiling is a serious penalty, but that Stovall’s conduct had hurt Ronaldo.
“I believe the continued collection and use of these documents was in bad faith, and simply disqualifying Stovall will not remedy the damage to Ronaldo because the misappropriated documents and their confidential content have been woven into the very fabric of Stovall’s claims. [la demandante Kathryn] Mayorga,” says the ruling. “Strong sanctions are warranted.”
Stovall did not immediately respond to phone and email messages Saturday. Text messages to associate Larissa Drohobyczer went unanswered. They could appeal the decision to the US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s Las Vegas attorney, Peter Christiansen, was away and was not immediately available for comment.
The Associated Press does not generally name people who say they are victims of sexual assault, but Mayorga gave consent through Stovall and Drohobyczer to release her name.