Judge wants more legal filing on Cosby defamation case

LOS ANGELES, Calif. – A judge on Monday delayed ruling on Bill Cosby’s motion to dismiss a defamation case filed by model Janice Dickinson over her allegations that the comedian drugged and raped her in 1982.

Dickinson sued Cosby in May over his denial of her claims. She says his former attorney wrote letters to news outlets denying her allegations and implying the organizations could be sued if they used the claims in stories.

Dickinson also says she tried to include the account in a 2002 memoir, but her publisher refused.

On Monday, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Debre Katz Weintraub delayed a ruling until March 29 and ordered attorneys to file new briefs on whether the denial by Cosby’s former lawyer constituted a legal communication about possible litigation.

The letter was sent to Entertainment Tonight, Buzzfeed and other news organizations.

Cosby’s attorneys assert that Dickinson has told differing accounts of her interactions with the comedian over the years and she cannot prove that their statements branding her a liar are false.

They also have raised the possibility that the denial from Cosby’s attorney is legally protected and cannot be used in a defamation case.

The lawsuit by Dickinson says Cosby’s denial of her allegations caused her to feel re-victimized.

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Anthony McCartney can be reached at http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP