Desiree Perez Lawsuit: Gag Order, Counterclaim, and Insurer Fight

Desiree Perez, CEO of Roc Nation, is being sued in federal court by her daughter, Demoree Hadley, who alleges Perez orchestrated a conspiracy to have her falsely committed to psychiatric facilities under Florida’s Baker Act and Marchman Act. The Desiree Perez lawsuit, Hadley v. Perez et al (Case No. 1:25-cv-22162), is pending before Judge Beth Bloom in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. It has grown into a multi-party fight involving a defamation counterclaim, contempt motions, a gag order, and a separate insurance coverage action.¹

What Demoree Hadley Alleges

Filed in May 2025, Hadley’s complaint claims Perez used her “money, power and influence” to assemble a group of people who worked together to separate Hadley from her husband, Javon Hadley, and to falsely accuse him of domestic violence.¹ The suit alleges Perez conspired with psychiatrist Dr. Daniel Bober to trigger an involuntary Baker Act evaluation. According to the complaint, Bober diagnosed Hadley with “unspecified psychosis” and ordered her taken to Memorial Regional Hospital, relying on information from family members rather than an independent assessment.

Hadley says Perez then petitioned to have her moved to a facility called Life Skills under the Marchman Act, alleging severe drug abuse. Hadley calls those claims fabricated and points to drug tests at Memorial Regional and a hair follicle test at Life Skills, both of which came back negative.¹ She was held for nearly two weeks before being released on April 8, after Perez voluntarily dismissed the Marchman Act case.

The complaint also alleges a broader pattern of harassment, including unfounded allegations to police that led to Javon Hadley’s arrest on battery and domestic violence charges. Prosecutors declined to pursue those charges. The lawsuit cites an eleven-page closeout memorandum from the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office, which Hadley says stated that Perez had made false allegations to police and that a prosecutor described Demoree as having been “wrongfully baker acted.” Attorney Hilton Napoleon II, who represents the Hadleys, told NBC Miami that in twenty years of practice he had never seen a case where “it is so clear that someone did something wrong.”

How Desiree Perez Has Responded

Perez has moved to dismiss the complaint, calling her actions “rooted in legitimate concern” for her daughter’s safety. Court filings say Perez initiated the Baker Act process because she feared Demoree was at risk of suicide and abusing prescription drugs.¹ Her attorney, Barbara A. Martinez of Holland & Knight LLP, argues Perez was trying to rescue her daughter from domestic abuse and claims there are “recordings of at least two instances of Mr. Hadley physically assaulting Ms. Hadley.”²

In August 2025, Perez’s team went on the offensive with motions seeking sanctions against Demoree, Javon, and their attorney. Martinez alleged the couple ran a “ruthless” campaign using social media bots and paid content creators to amplify the hashtag #JusticeForDemoree, generating millions of posts aimed at damaging Perez’s reputation and pressuring her into a $10 million settlement.³ As evidence, Perez’s team submitted recorded jail calls in which Javon Hadley allegedly said, “We’re gonna make her settle. It’s a payday.”

Martinez also accused the Hadleys of falsely claiming Perez had ties to a Mexican drug cartel and of alleging she had planted a surveillance device in their home. According to Perez’s lawyers, the purported device turned out to be a toy part. Perez asked the court to dismiss all claims, order deletion of related online content, permanently bar the Hadleys from contacting influencers about the case, and award legal fees.²

The Gag Order and Contempt Fight

On June 25, 2025, Judge Bloom issued an order barring the parties and their lawyers from making public statements about the case or instructing, encouraging, or facilitating third parties to do so.⁴

In July 2025, Roc Nation moved to hold Demoree Hadley in contempt, alleging she violated the order by appearing in an interview with media personality Tasha K that was posted on her Instagram account through a collaboration tag. Hadley said Tasha K added her as a collaborator without her consent and that she removed the content the same day.⁵ Court filings said Perez received threatening messages after the interview went up.⁶

The parties settled the contempt dispute. On August 4, 2025, a Magistrate Judge recommended denying the motions as moot after the Hadleys agreed to remove the identified posts and pay $2,500 in sanctions to Holland & Knight’s trust account within ten months. Judge Bloom adopted that recommendation on August 13, 2025, and separately ordered Hadley to remove a specific repost from X that remained in violation of the order.⁷

Dr. Bober’s Defamation Counterclaim

In November 2025, the psychiatrist who initiated the Baker Act evaluation, Dr. Daniel Bober, filed a counterclaim against Demoree Hadley alleging four counts of defamation. Bober claims that starting in May 2025, Hadley accused him on social media and in interviews of “abducting,” “kidnapping,” and “harassing” her, and of being “bought” or “paid” by her mother. He says the statements were false and caused significant professional harm, including threats, calls to revoke his medical license, and his forced resignation as Medical Director of the Jewish Adoption and Foster Care Option.⁸

Hadley moved to dismiss, arguing her statements were truthful and protected under Florida’s anti-SLAPP statute. On April 14, 2026, Judge Bloom denied the motion, finding Bober had adequately alleged defamation and that Hadley had not met the burden required for anti-SLAPP protection. The court said it could not weigh the truth of the disputed statements at the motion-to-dismiss stage.

Which Claims and Defendants Remain

The case involves several defendants beyond Perez, including Dr. Bober, the Broward County Sheriff’s Office, and various facilities and individuals. On October 8, 2025, Judge Bloom issued an omnibus order ruling on multiple motions to dismiss, granting some and denying others. Defendant Odyssey Behavioral Healthcare was dismissed in August 2025 for failure to timely serve.⁹

The court has continued narrowing the case since. In January 2026, Counts VII and XI were dismissed with prejudice, and in February 2026 the court adopted a recommendation dismissing Counts VI and VII with prejudice. A December 2025 order dismissed certain counts against South Broward Hospital District and Life Skills South Florida Outpatient, LLC without prejudice.¹⁰ The core dispute between Hadley and Perez continues.

The Insurance Coverage Dispute

On April 3, 2026, Roc Nation’s commercial liability insurer, New York Marine and General Insurance Co., filed a declaratory judgment action seeking a ruling that it has no duty to defend or indemnify Perez in the Hadley litigation. The insurer argues the case arises from a “contentious mother-daughter relationship” and is a “strictly personal matter” unrelated to Perez’s role as Roc Nation’s CEO, so she does not qualify as an “insured” under the policies.¹¹

The insurance case (No. 1:26-cv-22329) is before Judge Roy K. Altman in the Southern District of Florida, with both Perez and Hadley named as defendants. As of late May 2026, Perez had counsel of record and her response was due June 29, 2026. Hadley was served on June 6, 2026, with her response also due by the end of June.¹²

Where the Case Stands Now

As of June 2026, the main lawsuit is active and deep in discovery. A discovery hearing was held before Magistrate Judge Lauren Fleischer Louis on June 12, 2026. Perez’s team has continued to push aggressively, filing motions to compel production of Demoree Hadley’s communications from an attorney named Nayib Hassan and to require Javon Hadley to turn over a forensic image of his cellphone to investigative firm Guidepost Solutions. Both motions were pending with responses due June 29, 2026. A mediator, Ellen L. Leesfield, has been appointed.¹⁰

Who Desiree Perez Is

Perez co-founded Roc Nation, the entertainment and sports company built by Jay-Z, in 2008. She served as chief operating officer before being promoted to CEO in December 2019.¹³ The firm manages artists including Rihanna, Mariah Carey, and Megan Thee Stallion, runs a sports agency, and has executive-produced the NFL Super Bowl Halftime show since 2019. In 2022, Perez became the first executive producer to win an Emmy for the halftime show, for Outstanding Variety Special (Live).¹⁴

Perez was arrested in 1994 for conspiracy to distribute narcotics after being caught with 35 kilograms of cocaine. She cooperated with federal authorities as a DEA informant, wore hidden wires in meetings with cocaine traffickers, and helped break up operations in Puerto Rico and Colombia. She was sentenced to five years’ probation and served nine months in prison in 1999 for a parole violation.¹⁵ On January 20, 2021, President Donald Trump granted Perez a full pardon; the White House statement said she had “taken full accountability for her actions and has turned her life around” and had been “an advocate for criminal justice reform in her community.”¹³

1
NBC Miami. South Florida Woman Alleges Conspiracy in Baker Act Lawsuit
2
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3
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GovInfo. Hadley v. Perez, 1:25-cv-22162-BB
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Hot 97. Roc Nation Moves to Hold Desiree Perez’s Daughter in Contempt Over Tasha K Remarks
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HotNewHipHop. Roc Nation Desiree Perez Daughter Contempt
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CaseMine. Hadley v. Perez, Order on Motions
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GovInfo. Hadley v. Perez, Counterclaim Order
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CaseMine. Hadley v. Perez, Omnibus Order on Motions to Dismiss
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PACER Monitor. Hadley v. Perez et al
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Billboard. Roc Nation Insurer Won’t Pay CEO Legal Battle Daughter
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PACER Monitor. New York Marine and General Insurance Company v. Perez et al
13
Variety. Roc Nation Desiree Perez Trump Pardon
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Roc Nation. Desiree Perez
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New York Daily News. Damon Dash Wary of Jay-Z Associate and A-Rod Advisor Desiree Perez