A federal judge in Los Angeles has given Ariana Grande's legal team the go-ahead to serve expedited subpoenas on internet platforms as part of her lawsuit over stolen music and photos.
Judge Mark H. Epstein granted the request on Wednesday, allowing Grande's team to seek information from third-party platforms before the standard 20-day waiting period has passed. The ruling comes from a lawsuit Grande first filed in July against unnamed defendants, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Grande alleged that hackers targeted devices belonging to members of her inner circle and stole unreleased music, photos, and other materials, then sold that content on the dark web. Her attorneys argued that identifying the anonymous defendants required access to data held by the platforms those hackers used, and that waiting the usual period made no practical sense.
Judge Epstein agreed. "It makes little sense to wait," he wrote in his ruling. "The 20 day waiting period will never run because plaintiff cannot — even with reasonable diligence — discovery the defendant's identity without this discovery, and therefore will never be able to serve defendants."
Grande's team had noted in their filing that they had already identified certain internet platforms and third-party entities whose services were used to carry out the theft and sales, and that those entities are believed to hold data that could unmask the defendants.
The scope of the alleged hacking campaign is significant. Grande said she has been targeted for years. In 2023 alone, as many as 45 of her unreleased songs leaked online. The lawsuit specifically names three songs that surfaced without authorization: "Fantasize," "That Bitch Is Mine," and "White Tee."
With the subpoenas now authorized, Grande's legal team can move forward in trying to identify who is behind the campaign.
