Kelly Clarkson and Ex Brandon Blackstock Settle Lawsuits over $2.6 Million in Commissions: Source

Earlier this week, each party requested a dismissal of all pending cases, court documents show. The settlement means Clarkson and Blackstock avoid a planned trial

Kelly Clarkson, Brandon Blackstock
Kelly Clarkson; Brandon Blackstock. Photo: Art Streiber/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty; Taylor Hill/Getty
  • Kelly Clarkson and Brandon Blackstock have settled their lawsuits
  • The singer and her manager ex-husband each withdrew their cases earlier this week
  • A bench trial scheduled for Aug. 27 will now no longer move ahead

Kelly Clarkson and her ex-husband and former manager Brandon Blackstock have settled their lawsuits over millions in commissions, PEOPLE confirms.

"Everything is settled," a source tells PEOPLE. Details are confidential and were not disclosed. A bench trial scheduled for Aug. 27 will now no longer move ahead.

Rolling Stone was first to report the news.

According to court documents obtained by PEOPLE, Clarkson requested a dismissal on Tuesday, May 21, while Blackstock's management firm Starstruck Entertainment filed its own request to dismiss all of the pop star's claims against him on Wednesday, May 22 with the Superior Court of Los Angeles.

Brandon Blackstock and recording artist Kelly Clarkson attends the 60th Annual GRAMMY Awards at Madison Square Garden on January 28, 2018
Brandon Blackstock and Kelly Clarkson in New York City in January 2018.

Lester Cohen/Getty

Last month, Blackstock, 47, fired back at the lawsuit Clarkson filed against him in March.

The complaint claimed Clarkson, 42, should be awarded more than the $2.6 million that a California labor commissioner ruled her ex owed her from allegedly overstepping his legal limits as her manager. He requested it be dismissed in a Monday, April 15 filing.

In court documents obtained by PEOPLE, Blackstock and his management firm Starstruck Management deny "each and every allegation" raised by Clarkson who accused them of violating state labor laws since 2007 when she entered into an oral agreement with the company.

Blackstock's suit filed in California argued that the talk show host's suit should be dismissed because the ruling made by the labor commissioner in November 2023 "is binding on Clarkson."

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Since she did not "file a notice of appeal within 10 days" from when the decision was made in order to request more than the $2,641,374 that was ruled upon, her ex and his attorneys claimed it was outside of the proper jurisdiction to file a separate lawsuit now.

He also claimed that the alleged illegal earnings he and Starstruck Management obtained were already paid into his and Clarkson's community estate and, were the Grammy winner to be awarded more damages, the fee should be reduced because of that.

The papers also stated that "[Clarkson's] Complaint fails to state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action against Starstruck and is, therefore, barred for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted."

The labor commissioner ruled that Blackstock and Starstruck Management violated California's Talent Agencies Act, which stated managers cannot procure or try to procure employment for artists unless they act in conjunction with a licensed agent.

Blackstock and his legal team filed an appeal in December 2023.

Brandon Blackstock and Kelly Clarkson attend the 25th Annual Critics' Choice Awards at Barker Hangar on January 12, 2020 in Santa Monica, California
Brandon Blackstock and Kelly Clarkson in Santa Monica in January 2020.

Kevin Mazur/Getty

In mid-March, Clarkson brought forth her suit, which was obtained by PEOPLE, and claimed Blackstock took fees in return for securing contracts with the Billboard Music Awards, The Kelly Clarkson Show, Norwegian Cruise Line, The Voice and Wayfair.

In the filing, the "Since U Been Gone" singer asked for a “full and complete accounting from Starstruck of all monies received by Starstruck, directly or indirectly, in connection with any and all contracts, employment, or engagements pertaining in any way to the personal services of [Clarkson]."

That also included commissions, fees, profits, advances and producing fees.

Clarkson and Blackstock tied the knot in October 2013 and he acted as her manager from 2017 to 2020, the same year she filed for divorce in June. The former couple and business partners share two children, daughter River, 9, and son Remy, 8.

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