Steven Tyler’s lawsuit over allegations that he sexually abused Julia Misley in the 1970s is now set for a May 3 trial before Judge Lawrence Riff. The case returns to motion-heavy territory after a previous judge stepped aside and earlier rulings narrowed Misley’s claims to California.
Lawrence Riff said he would see the case through and would reconsider prior rulings if either side asked him to. He also told the court, “Both parties here are entitled to have the peace of mind at the end of the case that everything was on the up and up and proper, and that there’s no lingering shadow of doubt of possible impropriety.”
May 3 in Los Angeles
The new trial date puts the case before its fifth judge, a reminder of how many times the schedule has shifted since Misley filed the lawsuit in December 2022. Judge Patricia Young stepped aside in September with just two weeks left before an earlier trial date, after disclosing that she had discussed the case with another judge who had previously been disqualified from it.
Riff said he would toss out and reconsider any of Young’s rulings from the beginning of her assignment if either side requested it. Lawyers for Misley said they would challenge a key ruling from earlier this year that narrowed the case.
Julia Misley’s narrowed claims
That ruling dismissed Misley’s claims involving alleged misconduct in Massachusetts, Oregon, and Washington, leaving only California claims in play. Tyler denied the claims spanning three years and four states, and asked the court to dismiss the entire lawsuit.
His lawyers argued that he lived with Misley in Boston for most of their relationship, where the age of consent was 16, and that Massachusetts law governed them even when he traveled with her in other states. After multiple hearings, Young rejected Misley’s claims tied to Massachusetts, Oregon, and Washington.
Riff keeps the schedule moving
Riff said there would be more hearings, but he did not think the pretrial proceedings would be unduly prolonged. “There will be more hearings, to say the least, but I don’t think it’s going to unduly prolong the pretrial proceedings,” he said at a hearing in downtown Los Angeles on Monday.
The practical read for Misley is straightforward: the case is moving again, but the scope is still subject to review before the May 3 trial begins. Will Judge Lawrence Riff revive any of the dismissed claims before the trial starts?
