Tony Buzbee, the lawyer who just filed a rape complaint against Jay-Z, is in hot water with a previous client who claims he behaved like a loan shark and less than professionally as a legal representative for a personal injury case.
Matthew Ray Thompson Jr. filed the suit against Buzbee in federal court Monday, saying the attorney bungled an agreement reached with the man who was injured while working as a deckhand.
The incident took place in July 2023 when Thompson's boat crashed into a barge in the Houston Ship Channel.
Exclusively based on court documents acquired by TMZ, Thompson hired Buzbee to file courtroom action on November 2023. It filed this lawsuit to start automatic payments to Thompson from his employer while the case was being brought up.
Thompson argues that those payments went directly to Buzbee's firm, which kept more than 60 percent of the money owed to him.
He claims that instead of giving him the total amount of the settlement, Buzbee lent him money from his own bank account at a high interest rate.
"Buzbee has become rich by milking settlements with threats of negative attention from people who rely on their public reputations for livelihood," Thompson said in the lawsuit.
The lawsuit comes on the heels of a public spat between Buzbee and rapper Jay-Z, who took Buzbee to task on social media for allegedly taking advantage of clients. Although Thompson does not name or mention Jay-Z or other public figures in his lawsuit, his claims are similar to the sentiments expressed by the rapper, according to TMZ.
Buzbee has not yet responded to requests for comment on the allegations.
This poses grave questions about attorney-client relationships and the ethical duties of counsel. Thompson's claims raise concerns about transparency and fair treatment in the management of settlement funds.
It is too early to determine which other potential clients will surface or how Buzbee will respond as this story unfolds and more clients emerge with accusations against the attorney, who has made a name for himself by getting high-profile clients in cases like this one.
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