Ex-Oasis manager wins High Court case against singer over ‘harassment campaign’
Alan McGee sued Katie Lewis over a ‘vile campaign’ of harassment.
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The former manager of the band Oasis has won a High Court bid against a singer who has allegedly harassed him on social media.
Lawyers for music industry executive Alan McGee appeared at a hearing on Thursday in a bid for a default judgment against songwriter Cat Speranza – whose real name is Katie Lewis and was part of the band Cat SFX.
Mr McGee, whose labels released some of Cat SFX’s music, sued Ms Lewis over a “vile campaign” of harassment he claims she carried out by falsely claiming he was a racist, a rapist and a paedophile.
The record-label manager also sued Ms Lewis, who did not attend the hearing and was not represented, for libel and misuse of private information.
It’s very hard to capture the very extensive campaign that was carried out against the claimant
The High Court in London heard that after the release of Cat SFX’s sixth single in July 2022, Ms Lewis “became extremely angry with Mr McGee at the lack of commercial interest in her music”.
Barrister Kate Wilson, for the manager, said that from April this year, Ms Lewis had made multiple “disturbing” posts on social media against Mr McGee, with more than 100 posts “in a matter of a few weeks”.
Ms Wilson said: “It was voluminous…It was material that came out day after day after day.
“It’s very hard to capture the very extensive campaign that was carried out against the claimant.
“My client just wants this to stop.”
She added in written submissions: “It caused, and continues to cause, him considerable distress and was ‘calculated’ to do so.”
Mrs Justice Collins Rice ruled in Mr McGee’s favour, granting the default judgment after Ms Lewis did not take part in the legal proceedings.
In her ruling, the judge did not consider the merits of the case but said Mr McGee’s claim was correctly filed and “persuades me it is not unreal to conclude this course of conduct amounts to harassment”.
Mrs Justice Collins Rice found Ms Lewis was aware of the legal case and Thursday’s hearing, adding: “The defendant has not engaged apparently in any way at all.”
The judge also ruled that Ms Lewis has 28 days to remove the harassing posts and not repeat them, or to provide reasons why posts should not be removed.