Kanye West has gained a satisfactory settlement from insurers who stalled on paying up after the hip-hop star canceled a concert tour amid a mental breakdown. On Wednesday, his company, along with syndicates of Lloyd’s of London, filed a joint stipulation to dismiss the case in California federal court.
The $10 million lawsuit came last August, and in the complaint, West said he tendered a loss claim just two days after checking himself into a psychiatric center. West’s hospitalization at the UCLA Neuropsychiatric Hospital Center occurred in November 2016 after West exhibited bizarre behavior at several concerts with comments made on stage about Donald Trump and tirades directed at other musicians.
Related Stories
Insurance companies were provided with sworn testimony from his primary physician that West suffered a debilitating medical condition that required he not tour. Nevertheless, the insurers demanded to depose others in his entourage.
“Almost immediately after the claim was submitted, Defendants selected legal counsel to oversee the adjustment of the claim, instead of the more normal approach of retaining a non-lawyer insurance adjuster,” stated West’s complaint. “Immediately turning to legal counsel made it clear that Defendants’ goal was to hunt for any ostensible excuse, no matter how fanciful, to deny coverage or to maneuver themselves into a position of trying to negotiate a discount on the loss payment.”
West’s court papers suggested that the insurers were concerned about drug use, which was later confirmed in a countersuit that pointed to insurance policy exclusions pertaining to a preexisting psychological condition, possession of illegal drugs, prescription drugs not taken as medically prescribed and the consumption of alcohol rendering the insured unfit to perform.
Now, the parties have agreed on an undisclosed financial settlement to bring the lawsuit to an end.
