Singer-Songwriter Bobby Womack Settles Lawsuit Alleging He Was Duped

Singer/songwriter Bobby Womack and a businessman who has lent money to many recording artists have settled the musician's lawsuit alleging he was duped into selling the rights to his work the past 40 years for a minimal sum.

Lawyers for Womack filed a notice of settlement March 14 with Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Allen White. The terms were not divulged.

Womack sued Parviz Omidvar and his company Music Royalty Consulting Inc., in February 2012. His allegations included fraud, restitution of contract and financial elder abuse.

In their court papers, attorneys for Omidvar called the suit "a simple case of buyer's remorse." The lawyers said Womack knew what he was doing when he entered the agreement and that he received "substantial monies" from Omidvar.

The 69-year-old Womack alleged Omidvar conned him into taking $40,000 in exchange for royalties for such Womack creations as "It's All Over Now," which became a hit for  the Rolling Stones. Womack's music featured in the 1997 Quentin Tarantino-Pam Grier film "Jackie Brown," and he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2009.

Womack got loans from Omidvar about 15 times in the previous 25 years and trusted him because of their previous business relationships, the suit stated. So, Womack contacted Omidvar for another loan two years ago, the suit stated.

The suit maintained Womack signed the contract in April 2011 when he was suffering from ailments ranging from prostate cancer to dementia. The surgery for the cancer was followed by a "morphine-induced" two-week stay in a hospital, the suit stated.

Womack also was taking 17 prescribed medicines at the time, according to the suit.

Even Omidvar observed that Womack "looked dizzy and was staggering" and had swollen legs, the suit stated. Yet, he presented the agreement to Womack despite the plaintiff's condition and his knowledge that the musician was heavily medicated, the suit states.

After the signing, Omidvar told his secretary to have Womack's daughter pen her name as a witness to her father's signing, the suit stated. The daughter was rushed into signing the document and later realized it wrongly stated she had witnessed her father's signing, according to the suit.

After consulting with his attorneys, Womack tried to rescind the agreement and return the $40,000 check to Omidvar, but the businessman refused in both instances, the suit stated.

Omidvar's past clients include the late Michael Jackson. 

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