Jay-Z is asking a bankruptcy court to prevent a $119,235.45 judgment against Lillie Coley from being discharged as part of her ongoing bankruptcy case.
Coley is the godmother and former legal guardian of Rymir Satterthwaite, who has claimed for years that the rapper, whose legal name is Shawn Carter, is his biological father. Carter has repeatedly denied the allegation.
The debt stems from a California federal lawsuit Coley filed in May 2025. A judge dismissed her complaint and later ordered her to pay Carter’s attorneys’ fees and costs under California’s anti-SLAPP law.
According to TMZ, Carter now argues that the judgment should survive bankruptcy because it arose from what his filing characterizes as fraudulent statements and a sustained campaign intended to harass him. Coley has asked the bankruptcy court to dismiss his request, and no final ruling has been announced.
The Judgment Followed Coley’s Dismissed Federal Lawsuit
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Coley’s May 2025 complaint was connected to years of litigation over Satterthwaite’s paternity allegations. She accused Carter of fraud, intentional infliction of emotional distress and misconduct involving earlier court filings, judgments and property liens.
U.S. District Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett dismissed the complaint on Nov. 4, 2025, without giving Coley permission to amend it. The court concluded that the challenged litigation-related statements and conduct fell within activity protected by California’s anti-SLAPP statute. On Jan. 13, 2026, the court entered judgment in Carter’s favor and ordered Coley to pay $119,235.45.
Jay-Z Says the Debt Should Survive Bankruptcy
Carter’s latest filing asks the bankruptcy judge to declare the six-figure obligation nondischargeable, meaning Coley would remain responsible for it after her bankruptcy case concludes. TMZ reports that his attorneys described Coley’s previous statements as “fraudulent statements and misrepresentations designed to harass and target” Carter.
They also alleged that Coley and Satterthwaite have subjected him to “numerous unfounded court filings, online harassment campaigns and public statements” over approximately a decade. Carter claims he has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars responding to the litigation.
The Paternity Allegation Has Never Been Established
Satterthwaite says his late mother, Wanda Satterthwaite, told him that she had a relationship with Carter before his birth. Carter has consistently denied being Satterthwaite’s father and has described the repeated legal actions as harassment.
Courts have dismissed multiple lawsuits connected to the allegation, but the rulings have not produced a DNA result either establishing or disproving biological paternity.