Paula Abdul settles sexual assault lawsuit against ex-‘American Idol’ producer

nme.com:

Paula Abdul and former American Idol producer Nigel Lythgoe have reached a private settlement a year after she first sued him.Last year, Abdul made a series of claims in a suit relative to her time hosting both American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance, including sexual assault/battery, sexual harassment, gender violence and negligence.It was filed under California’s Sexual Abuse and Cover-Up Accountability Act, which allows accusers to file certain abuse lawsuits that would otherwise fall outside the statute of limitations within a one-year window.In a statement given to NME at the time, Lythgoe called Abdul’s claims “false” and “deeply offensive”, adding that for over two decades, he and Paula had “interacted as dear – and entirely platonic – friends and colleagues”.Abdul alleged that before taking on the role of one of the judges on American Idol, she met with several of the show’s executives in 2001, and during that meeting, Lythgoe had “verbally insulted and belittled” her, calling her a “has been” who “probably wouldn’t be known by the show’s contestants”.She went on to join the show in April 2002 but alleged that she was discriminated against, paid less than her fellow male judges, and bullied by Lythgoe and the show’s production.

Elsewhere in the suit, it was alleged that during one of the show’s “initial seasons”, Lythgoe had sexually assaulted her in the elevator of a hotel room they were staying at while traveling for one of the show’s auditions.“Lythgoe shoved Abdul against the wall, then grabbed her genitals and breasts, and began shoving his tongue down her throat,” it read. “Abdul attempted to push Lythgoe away from her.