CJ Wallace, the son of the Notorious B.I.G., picked up a legal victory this week after a federal judge refused to overturn a default entered against producer Jonathan Hay.
On Tuesday (Sept. 1), the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida denied Hay's motion to set aside the clerk's default in his case against Wallace, according to court documents. The decision leaves the existing default against Hay in place after Wallace scored a legal win in his defamation suit against the producer, which Hay has called “retaliatory.”
The legal battle traces back to Hay filing a civil lawsuit against Sean “Diddy” Combs, in which Wallace allegedly lured him to a warehouse where he was allegedly assaulted by Combs. Wallace countered with a defamation suit.
Wallace's motion for a default judgment, however, remains unresolved. The court held that request in abeyance, meaning a final determination regarding damages and any other potential relief has yet to be made.
A significant portion of the dispute centered on Wallace's efforts to serve Hay with the lawsuit.
According to the court, Wallace's attorneys made approximately 17 attempts to serve Hay using three different process servers. His legal team also hired a private investigator and conducted a skip trace before receiving authorization to use substituted service. In Hay’s filing, he alleges he was never properly served and claimed the substitute service used through the Florida Secretary of State failed to satisfy due process requirements. The service is used in certain circumstances when a defendant is believed to be concealing their whereabouts. Wallace’s team also sent the documents to Hay by email and mail five days later.
Hay failed to respond by his April 28 deadline. Wallace requested a clerk's default on May 5, which was entered the following day. Hay then moved to have the default thrown out on May 26 while also filing an answer and affirmative defenses.
Hay challenged the validity of the substituted service and argued that Wallace had not conducted the level of diligent inquiry required before using that method.
The court rejected those arguments, finding that Wallace had satisfied the statutory requirements. That included filing an affidavit detailing his compliance and documentation showing that notice had been directed to several addresses connected to Hay, as well as his email and separate legal counsel.
The judge also determined Wallace didn't need to provide a signed return receipt because the circumstances fell under Florida's concealment exception. The court pointed out that it had raised concerns as early as February 13 that Hay appeared to be avoiding service.
The ruling also cited Eleventh Circuit precedent establishing that relief from a default can be denied when a party's conduct demonstrates a willful or reckless disregard for court proceedings.
While Wallace has secured the procedural victory, the case isn't finished. His request for a default judgment remains pending, and Hay has also submitted a late response opposing that motion.
