Only on Tuesday did Judge Eduardo C. Robreno of United States District Court in Pennsylvania lift the seal on parts of the civil case. The suit, which was filed in United States District Court in Pennsylvania and initially placed under seal, underscores how aggressive and multifaceted Mr. Cosby’s legal strategy has become in combating the numerous civil cases and the criminal case against him. Anne Poulin, a law professor at Villanova University who is unconnected to the case, said that filing a lawsuit of this kind while a related criminal case was ongoing was unusual, and that the Pennsylvania lawsuit could be an alternate attempt by Mr. Cosby to buy time. But she explained, she said during cross-examination, what the settlement required Mr. Steele to do in order to obtain her file on the Cosby civil case without a search warrant, which Ms. Pressley seemed to suggest was a breach of the agreement. The new lawsuit targets Constand, her mother, two of her attorneys and the parent company of National Enquirer and according to sources, deals with promised confidentiality.
– Two days before a judge moved forward with the sexual assault case against him, Bill Cosby sued his accuser, claiming she breached a confidentiality agreement signed as part of a 2006 settlement. The Philadelphia Inquirer reports specific allegations weren't made clear on Tuesday when a judge partially lifted a seal on the suit, naming Andrea Constand, her lawyers Dolores Troiani and Bebe Kivitz, her mother, and the publisher of the National Enquirer as defendants. All apparently signed a confidentiality agreement when Constand settled a civil suit against Cosby, whom she accused of drugging and molesting her in 2004. Cosby's lawyers have repeatedly accused Constand's attorneys of breaching the agreement in the past, reports the New York Times, describing Cosby's latest move as "aggressive." During a pretrial hearing earlier this month, Troiani said the agreement barred Constand from initiating a criminal case against Cosby. However, she argued Constand was in her rights to cooperate with authorities who reached out to her, like the Montgomery County DA who reopened the criminal investigation into her alleged assault. Cosby lawyer Monique Pressley suggested Troiani "divulged what was in the confidential settlement agreement to the district attorney before they made the request for the file." The Hollywood Reporter points out Cosby's lawyers also hinted at legal action after Cosby's deposition in the 2006 civil case became public in July. "How that deposition became public without being court-sanctioned is something we are going to pursue and deal with very vigorously," a lawyer said. It's not the first time he's tried to turn the tables on accusers.