Alanis Morissette Sues Ex-Business Manager for $15 Million
By Robyn Collins
(RADIO.COM) – Nineties alternative rock icon Alanis Morissette has filed papers in Los Angeles County Superior Court, claiming her former manager Jonathan Schwartz transferred millions of dollars to his own accounts without her permission (via BBC News).
"Morissette was completely unaware of these cash transfers and had not authorized them," the complaint says. The singer is suing Schwarz and his company GSO for $15 million.
Schwartz handled Morissette's financial accounts between 2009 and 2016 and Morissette is suing him for breach of duty, fraud and negligence.
The singer, whose '90s mega-hits included "You Oughta Know" and "Ironic," fired Schwartz in March. Soon after, her new business manager, Howard Grossman, discovered 116 suspicious withdrawals, to the tune of more than $4.7 million.
According to the complaint, Schwartz said the transfers were made to fund a marijuana-growing business investment for the singer, and to avoid extra trips to the bank because Morissette "spends a lot of cash." She denies both claims.
The suit also claims Schwartz transferred $8 million out of investment accounts that he "promised would never be touched," despite her insistence that she should live off her current income and interest. "When she asked him if she was over budget, he would insist that things were 'fine', that she had 'nothing to worry about', and that she and her future grandkids were 'set for life,'" states the complaint.
Schwartz is also being sued by his own company, GSO, which is seeking to expel him from the firm. The company said it was "shocked" by the results of an internal investigation, which began after Grossman confronted Schwarz about Morissette's accounts.
"The investigation revealed that Mr Schwartz was burning through money to sustain a lavish lifestyle, including a $50,000 vacation to Bora Bora and an outstanding gambling debt of $75,000 at a casino in the Bahamas," states the GSO complaint. "He also owes the US government a substantial sum for unpaid taxes."
GSO disputed several points in Morissette's complaint, saying she sometimes requested large sums of cash, and that employees other than Schwartz made her aware she was over budget on several occasions.
The company has ended Schwartz's business relationships with his clients, which reportedly include Beyonce and Mariah Carey.
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