Judge gives Janice Dickinson the OK to take Bill Cosby to court

OHMYGOSSIP – Former model Janice Dickinson has been told her defamation lawsuit against Bill Cosby can proceed. Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Debre Katz Weintraub has given the star permission to take her case to trial, ruling a jury can decide the credibility of her allegations.

Dickinson claims a statement by Cosby’s former lawyer, Martin Singer, in which he called her a liar after she accused the embattled comedian of drugging and raping her in 1982, is defamatory.

The court ruled that Singer acted with malice in his November, 2014 letter to multiple media outlets, in which he called Dickinson’s allegations to Entertainment Tonight “fabricated and an outright lie”.

Singer also accused Janice of making her allegation of rape “when it appears that she (is) seeking publicity to bolster her fading career.”

Actor Bill Cosby (2nd R) (Photo: Reuters/ Clem Murray)

Model Janice Dickinson (Photo: Scanpix/ AP Photo/ Nick Ut)

Cosby’s legal team is considering the comic’s options on appeal, but Dickinson has made it clear she wants the funnyman in court.

“I will not go down,” she said at a press conference following the ruling. “I want Bill Cosby in court. I want him to stand under oath.”

Last month, Judge Weintraub dismissed Singer from Dickinson’s defamation suit, which she filed in May, 2015, telling Entertainment Tonight, “I’m suing Bill Cosby for justice and vindication.

“I was drugged and raped… by Bill Cosby, and the fact that he and his spokespeople have called me a liar… it’s just not correct. I want to fight this.”

The court ruling on Tuesday (29Mar16) is good news for Janice, who revealed she had been diagnosed with breast cancer on Monday (28Mar16). The former America’s Next Top Model judge learned of her prognosis after she underwent an urgent mammogram and biopsy earlier this month.

Look also: