Kanye West won’t be seeing his name in newspaper ads anytime soon—at least not any related to the Greenberg Traurig Law Firm.
According to court docs obtained by AllHipHop, United States District Judge Analisa Torres found Greenberg Traurig failed to make “diligent efforts” to locate Kanye West. Consequently, Torres denied Greenberg Traurig’s request to use Los Angeles newspapers to find him.
Instead, Torres suggested they hired a private investigator to determine Kanye West’s whereabouts.
The law firm did score a small victory, however, and was granted an extension. Torres is now giving them until February 15 to properly serve Ye with the necessary paperwork.
The document was dated Tuesday (January 24), meaning they have roughly three weeks to pull it off.
Have you ever had a client who was difficult to contact? You're not alone. Greenberg Traurig is said to have run newspaper ads to advise Kanye West of a Withdrawal Order:https://t.co/l4BwUXhdGx
— American Bar Association (@ABAesq) January 17, 2023
Greenberg Traurig filed the request last week, arguing: “Publication of the Withdrawal Order’s contents in two Los Angeles-area newspapers, where Kanye West appears to reside, will also apprise him of the Withdrawal Order. Given Ye’s public status, publication of the Withdrawal Order will likely garner significant media attention, resulting in broader publication and provide an even greater likelihood of apprising Ye of the Order.”
Greenberg Traurig was representing Kanye West in his legal battle against Ultra International Music Publishing.
In December 2022, they asked for an extension to serve West after dropping him as a client. The attorneys needed to serve Ye before moving on from a copyright infringement lawsuit against him.
Torres granted Greenberg Traurig’s motion to withdraw as West’s counsel on November 30, 2022. Torres also instructed the law firm to personally serve their ex-client with a court order by December 13, which they evidently could’t do.