Two individuals who allege that they were sexually abused by Michael Jackson when they were children have had their lawsuits revived by a California appeals court. In a decision by the 2nd District Court of Appeal, a three-judge panel determined that the lower court was wrong to dismiss the lawsuits of Wade Robson and James Safechuck. The appeals court found that the Jackson-owned corporations named as defendants in the cases had a duty to protect the men. The revival of the lawsuits was made possible by a temporary California law that expanded the scope of sexual abuse cases. This is the second time that the lawsuits have been reinstated after being dismissed. Robson brought his suit in 2013, followed by Safechuck in the subsequent year. The men achieved greater recognition for their stories after appearing in the 2019 HBO documentary “Leaving Neverland.” A judge who initially dismissed the suits in 2021 argued that the corporations, MJJ Productions Inc. and MJJ Ventures Inc., could not be expected to provide the same level of protection as organizations like the Boy Scouts or a church. The higher court disagreed with this reasoning, stating that a corporation facilitating the sexual abuse of children by one of its employees cannot be excused from their duty to protect those children simply because they are solely owned by the perpetrator. The judges added that it would be illogical to find no duty based solely on the fact that the corporate defendant has only one shareholder, and therefore, they reversed the judgments made for the corporations. The attorney for the Jackson estate expressed disappointment in the decision, maintaining that Michael Jackson is innocent of the allegations. Vince Finaldi, the attorney representing Robson and Safechuck, expressed satisfaction with the court’s decision and looked forward to a trial on the merits. The judges did not rule on the truth of the allegations, leaving that to be determined in a future jury trial.
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