L.A. Reid Settles Sexual Assault Suit by Drew Dixon

Music executive L.A. Reid settled a sexual assault lawsuit filed by former Arista Records colleague Drew Dixon on January 12 in New York, averting a trial that was set to begin that day in Manhattan federal court.

The confidential agreement came hours before jury selection was scheduled, with no details disclosed about its terms or any financial compensation involved. Reid's attorney, Imran H. Ansari, stated that the matter was resolved amicably without any admission of liability. Dixon, who worked under Reid as a vice president of artist and repertoire at Arista in 2001, had accused him of groping and digitally penetrating her without consent on two occasions that year: once on a private company plane during a retreat and again in his car. She further alleged that after rebuffing his subsequent advances, Reid retaliated by reducing her promotional budget, rejecting artist auditions and creating a hostile work environment that derailed her career trajectory.

Dixon filed the suit in 2023 under New York's Adult Survivors Act, a law that temporarily lifted the statute of limitations for civil sexual assault claims, allowing a one-year window for survivors to seek justice. The...