Justin Bieber has been court-ordered to expose sensitive details of his life and those in it in a 10-page questionnaire sent by the lawyers of a Miami paparazzo suing the star in a civil assault lawsuit.
According to court records of the Friday hearing presided over by Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Sarah Zabel, the 20-year-old has just one week by to complete the document — titled “Interrogatories to Defendant Justin Bieber” — in writing and submit it back to court.
Paparazzo Jeffrey Binion , who is represented by attorney Mark DiCowden, alleges Bieber’s bodyguards threw him against a wall and held him in a choke hold before taking his camera and memory card, after he snapped the singer outside Miami’s Hit Factory recording studio on June 5, 2013.
Most, if not all, the questions in the 10-pager asks for the cellphone numbers of anyone who traveled and/or worked with Bieber during specific periods including June 3 – June 8, 2013.
Justin is required to list the phone numbers of friends and bodyguards at the Hit Factory on the day of Binion’s alleged assault, anyone who accompanied him to the Miami Heat playoff game on June 4, as well as details of security personnel used during his Florida visit.
Since the questionnaire will be made public like the rest of filings in the Miami lawsuit, those named will obviously need to change their contact numbers.
The level of exposure is even worse for Bieber.
Judge Zabel has ordered the singer to list every past and present legal claim and lawsuit filed against him.
In addition, Bieber must reveal every personal email account and cellphone numbers he was using at the time his bodyguards allegedly assaulted paparazzo Binion last June.
The clear inference from that is that at some point DiCowden intends to file a motion asking for the contents of those emails and phone exchanges.
Bieber was grilled by DiCowden in a four-and-a-half-hour videotaped deposition in Miami on March 6, which was leaked days afterwards and, for all intents and purposes torn, apart by the Internet and media.
In the selected clips, first posted by TMZ , Bieber was seen giving a variety of evasive, surly, and argumentative responses, often including the phrase “I don’t recall.” He also refused to answer questions about on-off girlfriend, Selena Gomez .
As a consequence, DiCowden filed motions last month asking Judge Zabel to order Bieber to a second deposition . In addition to pointing out the singer’s mostly uncooperative conduct in his deposition, the attorney said he was prevented from asking Gomez-related queries by the star’s lawyers.
The judge is scheduled to rule on the second deposition request on June 30.
Radar Online reports one of the questions in the questionnaire reads:
“Please state the name, address and telephone number of all persons who have traveled with you for every trip you have taken during the past two years. For each said person, please specify the trip or trips said person traveled with you on.”
Another asks:
“Have you, or has anyone acting on your behalf ever asked or directed anyone, including but not limited to security personnel, to prevent someone from taking your photograph, or to obtain the camera, film and/or digital film card from someone who was taking, or was attempting to take your photograph?”
“If your answer to this question is affirmative, please state, as to each time this occurred.”
Some of the questions are not related to the Binion case and referred to alleged altercations between Bieber’s security team and paparazzi during the singer’s 2012-2013 “Believe” world tour and off it.
DiCowden previously filed a motion asking for punitive damages based on his documentation of these 11 other alleged incidents and told Zabel in a hearing last week that such as award could stop future assaults against paparazzi.
In court, Bieber’s attorney, Jared Lopez, said there is no evidence Binion was physically harmed in the alleged June incident — meaning compensatory damages could be minimal.
Lopez also said there is no evidence that Bieber told Hesny to attack Binion and quoted the singer saying “I don’t tell security how to do their job” in his deposition.
Judge Zabel has not yet ruled on DiCowden’s punitive damages bid.
DiCowden has reportedly subpoenaed Bieber’s longtime manager Scooter Braun to a May 15 deposition, which will be videotaped in Los Angeles.
The attorney also told Radar he intends to subpoena Gomez .
Bieber’s full 10-page, lawsuit-related questionnaire can be viewed here.