Judge Tosses Spector Accountant Case

Fri., Jun. 23, 2006 10:50 PM PDT by Natalie Finn

Phil Spector's legal troubles have involved an ever-expanding cast of characters.

The Los Angeles court system is doing its best to whittle it down, however. Superior Court Judge Mark V. Mooney tossed out part of a lawsuit brought by Spector's accountant against the notorious music producer's former assistant, Michelle Blaine, whom Spector is also suing for money-related reasons.

David Neste, the man who officially manages all the cash that Spector has accused Blaine of mishandling, had sued her for fraud, deceit and negligent misrepresentation--all charges that were dismissed Friday. Judge Mooney gave Neste and his attorney, Randall Dean, the option to refile their complaint within 20 days.

Spector, 66, filed his own suit against Blaine in September, accusing his former employee of embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars out of his personal accounts, including $450,000 from his pension plan. She then countersued in March for sexual harassment, alleging she was fired because she wouldn't marry him, making her unable to testify at his upcoming murder trial, per spousal privilege.

She also sued Neste, claiming any money Spector lost was his accountant's fault. Neste then countersued May 11.

Blaine, who started working for Spector in October 2003, about a month before he was formally charged with the murder of actress Lana Clarkson, has stated that the money she received from her onetime boss was a gift.

Blaine's father, Hal, was a drummer who worked on a bunch of Spector's studio recordings in the '60s. In her lawsuit, the 41-year-old Costa Mesa woman said that she helped the Wall of Sound creator form a production company in 2004 to handle plans for a possible reality show about him and other creative ventures, and that he transferred $425,000 to her from his pension plan for those purposes.

Six months after that, according to court documents, Blaine was fired. On the request of Spector's camp, Los Angeles Superior Court Commissioner Victor Greenberg ordered about $425,000 of her assets frozen Dec. 13, and a hearing is set for Wednesday to determine whether they'll continue to remain that way.

Spector's lawsuit against Blaine is scheduled to go to trial Apr. 16, 2007, and may or may not come after a verdict is finally rendered in the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer's criminal trial, which after many delays is supposed to begin Jan. 16.

Blaine's attorney, Stephen Raucher, told reporters that he was pleased with Judge Mooney's decision to throw out some of Neste's accusations, saying that he felt the most serious allegations were now under the bridge. Blaine's legal camp is expected to take a deposition from Spector next month to further the court's understanding of these so-far murky financial matters.