Who is Tony Buzbee, the larger-than-life lawyer behind lawsuits against Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs?

By Andy Rose, CNN

(CNN) — Mean. Obsessed. Brash. Psycho. And that’s what his friends call him.

All of those words have been applied to Tony Buzbee – and he likes them so much, he features them prominently on his website.

The already high-profile, Houston-based lawyer has gained additional fame by filing 20 lawsuits against music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs alleging a pattern of sexual abuse of men and women. When Buzbee drew businessman and rapper Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter into one of those lawsuits, it marked the latest development in a high-stakes legal battle Buzbee characteristically is not avoiding.

“Mr. Carter has not only sued me, but he has tried to bully and harass me and this plaintiff,” Buzbee posted on X Sunday, after Jay-Z acknowledged being the plaintiff in a suit against Buzbee and called the attorney a “fraud.”

Jay-Z’s accuser, listed in the lawsuit as “Jane Doe,” alleges she was raped by both Carter and Diddy when she was 13 during a party after the 2000 Video Music Awards.

In a statement to CNN, Jay-Z called the allegations “so heinous in nature that I implore (the accuser) to file a criminal complaint, not a civil one!! Whomever would commit such a crime against a minor should be locked away, would you not agree?” He also filed a motion asking the judge to require Doe to reveal her identity or dismiss the lawsuit.

Combs has entered not guilty pleas to federal criminal charges and denied wrongdoing in all the civil suits filed against him.

On Tuesday, Jay-Z’s attorney Alex Spiro alleged in a letter to a federal judge that a woman in an unrelated case spoke to members of Buzbee’s law firm “who she felt were pressing her to make … allegations that were not true,” and was dropped by his firm when she refused.

Buzbee called the allegation “patently ridiculous.”

“We don’t pressure people nor do we need to. What we have done is reject potential cases from people we find to not be credible,” Buzbee said in a lengthy email to CNN.

Buzbee’s involvement at the center of the Diddy controversy is only the latest in his long career of high-stakes litigation against celebrities and corporations – and his defense of powerful politicians – cases which have put the attorney himself firmly in the spotlight.

Buzbee doesn’t shy from attention

Buzbee, 56, is fond of showing off a large tattoo of a shark on his right arm. His law firm’s biography credits his time as a Marine Corps officer for learning to “hit fast and exploit weaknesses, and to be creative.”

Buzbee is also fond of showing off his extraordinary personal wealth. His social media accounts are filled with photos of his yacht, his cars and his 7,000-acre ranch. Also prominently featured: a private jet, decorated with a shark painted on its tail and registered to a subsidiary of his firm called “Lawsuit Air.”

His pride in the military and love of conspicuous consumption led him in 2017 to buy a $600,000 decommissioned World War II Sherman tank, which he parked on the street outside his house, CNN affiliate KPRC reported. His homeowners’ association was less than amused and demanded he move it.

“I’m not trying to pick a fight with anyone. I just think the tank is cool,” Buzbee told KPRC.

After the controversy died down, Buzbee did move the tank, first to his ranch (posting a video of him using it to crush cars on Instagram) and then to his alma mater, Texas A&M University, the following year, according to CNN affiliate KHOU.

“I think we’ve had our fun,” Buzbee told the station with a grin.

History of lawsuits against celebrities

Before his involvement in the claims against Combs, the highest-profile target of sexual misconduct accusations brought by Buzbee was Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson, who formerly played for the Houston Texans.

Buzbee filed two dozen lawsuits accusing Watson of misconduct, including several allegations of sexual assault and harassment. The NFL player repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. The Houston Texans – Watson’s team at the time of the allegations – agreed in 2022 to settle claims made by Watson’s accusers confidentially out of court. Watson personally settled with 23 accusers. In a criminal investigation, two grand juries declined to hand up indictments against him.

Jay-Z is not the first target of a Buzbee lawsuit who has accused his client of making up her story, but Buzbee insists he vets accusers before accepting their cases.

“We ask every person, whether they’re a witness or whether they’re a victim, that become a client, I want every picture you have,” Buzbee told CNN’s Elizabeth Wagmeister in an October interview. “I want receipts. If you travelled somewhere, I want dates, I want calendar entries. I want texts, I want video, I want witnesses.”

After tragedy struck at the 2021 Astroworld festival headlined by rapper Travis Scott when a crowd surge left 10 people dead, Buzbee was one of a group of attorneys who filed suit against Scott and concert organizer Live Nation.

“This (concert) should have been stopped from the very beginning,” Buzbee told CNN in a 2021 interview.

Although court documents show more than 100 plaintiffs’ attorneys from dozens of firms were involved in the case, Buzbee’s media-friendly style ensured he would be one of the top names associated with the case.

Court records show dozens of the lawsuits against Astroworld organizers have since been settled, and Buzbee took to social media in 2022 to announce the settlement by one of his clients, the family of 21-year-old Axel Acosta Avila, who died in the crowd surge. “The terms are confidential,” Buzbee said.

Buzbee stays in the headlines

The notoriety that follows Tony Buzbee isn’t always the kind he cultivates.

Five months after the end of Buzbee’s marriage to his first wife Zoe, a woman described as being on a first date with Tony Buzbee was charged with criminal mischief for allegedly refusing to leave his mansion and damaging at least $300,000 in artwork at his home, including an Andy Warhol painting, the Houston Chronicle reported.

The woman, who worked as a court reporter, denied the allegations. Court records show the case was dismissed after she agreed to 120 hours of community service and random drug testing. She was also ordered to stay away from Buzbee.

“We have no interest in having contact with Mr. Buzbee, so that’s fine with us,” her attorney Justin Keiter told reporters outside court.

In 2021, Buzbee married Frances Moody, who is part of a wealthy Galveston business and banking family, according to a profile in Texarkana Magazine. As a wedding gift, Buzbee gave his new bride a farm and named it after her, the Houston Chronicle reported.

Even Buzbee’s charity frequently comes with spectacle. In 2010, he donated 13 luxury cars to a local social service agency, one of which was worth more than a half-million dollars, according to CNN affiliate KTRK.

“They’re just cars,” Buzbee shrugged, adding he didn’t want his children to become “spoiled.”

Success in legal fights but not elections

Buzbee’s fame in Texas goes well beyond the courtroom. He is also a fixture in Republican politics.

In 2014, Buzbee represented then-Gov. Rick Perry against an indictment accusing him of abuse of power. Years before Donald Trump turned a mug shot into a form of political marketing, Buzbee invited reporters to attend a news conference at an Austin courthouse shortly after Perry had his booking photo and fingerprints taken.

After nearly two years of legal wrangling, charges against Perry were dismissed by the state’s highest court.

Last year, Buzbee was on the legal team of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton – known for his own litany of lawsuits against the Biden administration – in his impeachment trial in the state Senate. Paxton was accused of using his authority to benefit a political donor as well as attempting to misuse taxpayer money to settle a whistleblower lawsuit against his office.

Buzbee readily acknowledges his strategy to fight charges went well beyond questions of the law. “His ability to turn the trial into a referendum on political loyalty, rather than a straightforward legal proceeding, was a key factor in Paxton’s acquittal,” the Buzbee Law Firm says on its website.

All but two of the Senate’s 18 Republicans voted against every article of impeachment, and many of those who challenged Paxton seemed to have paid a price. Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan, a Republican, who led the charge to impeach Paxton, barely survived a reelection challenge this year and announced last week he would not seek another term as speaker.

Buzbee’s defense of Paxton appears to have worked out well for his firm. Last month, he was hired to help Paxton’s office with a state lawsuit against three major investment firms.

But Buzbee’s success on the legal side of politics has not been replicated when he has put his own name on the ballot. He lost the 2019 race to be mayor of Houston after taking incumbent Democrat Sylvester Turner to a runoff. Buzbee spent more than $12 million of his own money on the race, according to campaign finance reports.

Four years later, Buzbee ran for a Houston City Council seat, which his opponent, incumbent Mary Nan Huffman, called a publicity stunt.

“He only cares about himself and his press clippings,” Huffman said in a statement to CNN affiliate KHOU. Buzbee also lost that race in a runoff.

Most recent high-profile case an unusual loss

Buzbee’s record in court has also seen its losses. Earlier this year, he represented California socialite Rebecca Grossman, who was accused of running over two young brothers in a crosswalk and then fleeing the scene.

It was a rare case of Buzbee defending a client in a criminal case outside Texas. Grossman was convicted of two counts of murder and vehicular manslaughter and sentenced to 15 years in prison.

Even for an attorney who has taken on so many high-profile cases, Buzbee acknowledges that pursuing shocking allegations against Combs, one of the best-selling musical artists of all time – and not on his home turf – will be a big test of his legal and public relations skills.

“This is not our first rodeo,” he told CNN, “but this is not gonna be easy.”

CNN’s Kara Scannell contributed to this report.

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