Jennifer Lopez’s countersuit against her ex-driver has been dismissed. After her chauffer sued her with an employment lawsuit for being openly humiliated by Lopez’s manager, among other grievances, Lopez countersued for $20 million in an extortion lawsuit, claiming that the driver threatened to divulge secrets he’d gleaned while driving her and listening in, blackmailing her that he would leak them to the media or even arrange for her to be arrested. Hakob Manoukian, the driver, and his attorneys, filed a motion to dismiss the countersuit, calling it baseless allegations to answer his employment lawsuit. The judge agreed, and so while her suit has been dismissed, Hakob’s is still pending.
Manoukian’s specific grievances are that he was not paid what he was promised, that he was stiffed for his overtime to the amount of $200,000, and that Benny Medina, Lopez’s manager, insulted and demoted him before staff, reducing him from a full time driver to an L.A. driver only, and this because he was “not presentable” and because he struggled with English. He has been driving her since 2005 when he left his private limo company to work full time for Lopez and her than husband Marc Anthony. Whether his charges convince the court remains to be seen.
