Diddy’s Lawyers Seek to Drop Incarcerated Rapper as Client

Attorneys representing Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs are asking to withdraw from the jailed music mogul’s defamation lawsuit, claiming he has not paid the firm for more than six months.

Court filings obtained by The Daily Mail show that Sher Tremonte LLP has moved for permission to step down as Combs’s counsel in his lawsuit against Courtney Burgess, Ariel Mitchell and Nexstar Media Inc., the parent company of NewsNation.

Michael Tremonte, a partner at the firm, alleged that Combs is in “substantial arrears” on his legal bills and that his alleged lack of cooperation has made continuing the representation “unreasonably difficult.”

Tremonte asked the court to “grant the instant motion to withdraw” as Combs’s attorneys.

A representative for Combs said the rapper was replacing the firm because it had overcharged him, an allegation Tremonte described as “simply false.”

“Mr. Combs is in substantial arrears in paying Sher Tremonte’s legal fees,” Michael wrote in the court documents seeking the firm’s withdrawal. “For many months, while Sher Tremonte has been rendering legal services, Mr. Combs has not remitted any payment for the substantial balance of attorney’s fees, costs, and expenses incurred during Sher Tremonte’s representation of him in this matter.”

“More specifically, Mr. Combs has not paid Sher Tremonte anything for over six months and his last payment related to fees and expenses that were incurred in late 2025. Accordingly, a substantial portion of the total overdue balance consists of invoices that are over 90 days in arrears.”

Tremonte said the firm faces an “unreasonable financial burden” if it continues to represent Combs, citing both the size of the unpaid balance and the volume of work involved in the defamation case.

The attorney also alleged there has been a “total breakdown in cooperation and communication” between the firm and Combs.

‘In addition to Mr. Combs’s refusal to pay in accordance with the express terms of his agreement to do so, there has been a total breakdown in cooperation and communication between Mr. Combs and the Firm. Mr. Combs has declined to make himself available for timely, substantive, and direct communications about his cases for over four months.’

They said their ability to represent Combs has been made ‘unreasonably difficult’ by his ‘lack of cooperation.’ 

‘The Firm’s representation has been rendered unreasonably difficult by Mr. Combs’s lack of cooperation, resulting in a breakdown in attorney-client communications and rendering Sher Tremonte incapable of continuing to provide effective legal services to Mr. Combs.’

They claim Combs has been notified on ‘multiple occasions’ of their concerns as well. 

‘Mr. Combs has been notified on multiple occasions both by mail and through email to his power of attorney that Sher Tremonte would seek to withdraw as counsel unless Sher Tremonte’s legal fees were paid and he made himself available for timely, substantive, and direct communications about this case.’

The Daily Mail has reached out to a representative for Combs and his lawyer for comment. 

A representative for Diddy responded to the claims with a quote from the rapper, who is currently behind bars after he was convicted on two prostitution charges last year. 

‘I made the decision to switch lawyers because I won’t let anyone take advantage of me by overcharging me and running up bills that were never approved,’ Diddy, through his representative Juda Engelmayer, said in a statement provided to The Daily Mail. 

‘This is strictly a business matter, and any talk about unpaid fees is just part of our dispute over those unapproved charges,’ he added. 

Engelmayer, on behalf of Diddy’s lawyer Jonathan Davis, further added:  ‘Jonathan Davis, Mr. Combs’s civil litigator for 33 years, has been representing him and his companies in lawsuits in multiple states since his arrest in 2024, and has encountered no resistance from the client in defending him. 

‘The complications of representing an incarcerated client are always difficult, but never insurmountable. Mr. Davis said that he “continues to defend Mr. Combs undaunted because he is confident the truth will be exposed” and that his client will be vindicated.’ 

Tremonte denied Combs’s claims in a statement to The Daily Mail.  

‘We represented Mr. Combs zealously and very efficiently under challenging circumstances. 

‘As stated in our court filings, we are withdrawing from representing him because he has not paid his long-overdue invoices and has become uncooperative. Any suggestion that we overcharged him is simply false.’ 

Diddy is currently serving a lengthy prison sentence following a widely publicized trial last year.  

A jury found Diddy guilty of two counts of transporting prostitutes across state lines for the purpose of sex at his 2025 federal trial. He was acquitted by the jury on the more serious charges of racketeering and sex trafficking.

A judge sentenced the rapper to four years and two months in prison as the sentence began in October 2025.

Diddy’s release date has moved a number of times since he started serving his 50-month sentence, after his conviction on two prostitution charges back in October 2025.

He was originally set to be released in the summer before the date moved up to April, then February, then January and now back to February.