Brandy Norwood’s ex-housekeeper is airing out the singer’s dirty laundry after her lawyers made public a lawsuit brought against the Cinderella star.
Maria Elizabeth Castaneda sued Norwood for being underpaid citing age discrimination last year and settled out of court for $40,000 in November. But Castaneda’s legal team claims the $40,000 check bounced. They are also seeking $87,445.80 in legal fees, according to documents obtained by RadarOnline.
At the time of the suit’s filing, Castaneda’s attorneys were seeking between $39,194.46 to $87,445.80. While they won 40 grand, they say the check they received from Norwood was declined at her bank. It caused the housekeeper’s lawyers, who represent Lipeles Law Group, to request more money for the time spent helping Castaneda recover the funds.
“When my client received her check from [Brandy], the check bounced, the bank closed her account and I then had to spend more time personally assisting her in retrieving the funds from [Brandy],” one of Castaneda’s attorneys told RadarOnline.
They also say they spent money to gather witnesses to speak on Castaneda’s behalf in order to sue the 43-year-old I Wanna Be Down star.
The prosecution also sought to depose the Mississippi-born actress’ brother Ray J and her mother Sonja Norwood.
To add to the melee, The Boy Is Mine singer suffered a seizure and was hospitalized around the same time the court proceedings took place. At the time of her health scare, she thanked her fans for their “overwhelming support.”
“Thank you for all your prayers and support,” she wrote on an Instagram story. “Grateful for you all. See you soon.”
In 2006, Norwood was involved in a deadly accident on the 405 Freeway in Los Angeles, where her vehicle struck and killed 38-year-old Awatef Aboudihaj. She was not arrested but the victim’s family filed a $50 million wrongful death lawsuit against the star, who eventually settled out of court.
Three years after the accident, Brandy revealed that “the whole experience did completely change my life, and I can say that I think I’m a better person from it. You know, I still don’t understand all of it and why all of it happened, but I definitely have a heart, and my heart goes out to everyone involved. I pray about it every single day, and that’s all I can really say on the subject.”
