Chris Brown is asking a court for another shot at a case that ended with a $12.9 million judgment in favor of his former housekeeper, Maria Avila.
The singer has filed court documents seeking a new trial, arguing that the jury was unfairly influenced after being allowed to hear about his 2009 felony domestic violence conviction involving Rihanna.
Brown had previously asked the judge to keep that conviction out of the trial, arguing that an incident from 17 years earlier had no connection to the dog-bite lawsuit and could prejudice the jury against him.
The judge ultimately allowed the testimony. Now Brown is challenging the outcome and asking for a new trial.
The legal dispute stems from a lawsuit filed by Maria Avila, Brown’s former housekeeper, who claimed she suffered severe injuries after being attacked by a dog at the singer’s Los Angeles home.
Brown denied that he was legally responsible for Avila’s injuries.
The case eventually went to trial, where the jury returned a judgment totaling $12.9 million in Avila’s favor.
Brown is now seeking to have the verdict revisited.
According to the court filing, a major part of his argument concerns evidence presented to the jury about his 2009 felony domestic violence conviction involving Rihanna, who was his girlfriend at the time.
Before the trial, Brown had asked the court to prohibit testimony concerning the conviction.
His argument was that the incident was unrelated to the allegations in Avila’s lawsuit and that allowing jurors to hear about it could unfairly influence their view of him.
The judge rejected that request and allowed the testimony to be heard.
Brown now argues that the decision prejudiced the jury and contributed to the massive judgment against him.
His filing points to the age of the conviction as another reason he believes it should not have played a role in the trial.
Brown noted that the incident occurred 17 years ago, when he was 20 years old.
The singer is therefore asking the court for a new trial, effectively seeking to undo the result of the proceeding that produced the $12.9 million judgment.
The request has not yet been decided.
That means the existing judgment remains the outcome of the trial while Brown’s request is pending.
Avila’s lawsuit dates back to 2021, when she sued Brown over the alleged dog attack at his Los Angeles residence.
She claimed the incident caused serious injuries.
Brown disputed legal responsibility for those injuries, setting up a civil case that eventually proceeded to trial years after the lawsuit was initially filed.
The case became more complicated when the question of Brown’s past conviction entered the proceedings.
His 2009 domestic violence conviction stemmed from his assault of Rihanna.
Brown argued that bringing the old case before the jury would unfairly prejudice jurors because it had no direct connection to the allegations involving Avila.
The judge nevertheless permitted testimony about the conviction.
The jury ultimately reached a $12.9 million judgment in Avila’s favor.
Brown’s latest court filing represents his attempt to challenge the trial result rather than simply accept the judgment.
However, the court has not yet ruled on whether a new trial will be granted.
Brown’s request could have significant consequences for the legal dispute because a successful motion for a new trial would reopen a case that already produced a multimillion-dollar judgment.
At the center of his argument is not simply the size of the judgment, but what information the jury was permitted to consider when reaching its decision.
Brown maintains that evidence concerning his 2009 conviction was too prejudicial and too disconnected from the dog-bite allegations to be included.
The judge will ultimately decide whether that argument provides sufficient grounds for another trial.
Until then, there is no ruling that the original verdict was improperly reached.
The case also highlights how a celebrity’s past can follow them into later legal disputes.
Brown’s 2009 conviction involving Rihanna occurred when he was 20, but nearly two decades later, the matter became an issue in a completely separate civil case.
Brown argues that the old conviction unfairly affected how jurors viewed him.
The court will now have to determine whether that concern is enough to justify giving the case another trial.
Chris Brown is asking for a new trial after a jury awarded Maria Avila $12.9 million, arguing that testimony about his 2009 Rihanna assault unfairly prejudiced the proceedings.
The judge has yet to rule on Brown’s request, leaving the next move in the case with the court.
