By Roger Friedman

No one showed up yesterday in New Orleans to defend or represent Michael
Jackson in a lawsuit.

It doesn’t really matter if you think the suit is without merit. It’s in
court. Someone was supposed to show up. They didn’t.

The suit is brought by a man who now says Jackson molested him in a
limousine some time ago. It’s a recovered-memory case. Jackson had hired a
law firm to represent him, but didn’t pay them. They’re also suing him for
$50,000.

The fact is, Jackson’s legal staff is much diminished from days of old.

Instead of using legal beagles Zia Modabber and Steve Cochran, Jackson is
reduced to employing a Houston attorney and some guys from Torrance, Calif.,
including his old pal, Brian Oxman.

Oxman was once suspended from practicing law in California and was fired
from Jackson’s defense team in his child molestation case by Tom Mesereau.

The reasons for the firing were twofold. Oxman had filed an answer in Marc
Schaffel’s lawsuit against Jackson that contradicted what Mesereau was
trying to achieve in the criminal trial.

But Mesereau, according to sources, also held Oxman responsible for asking
Janet Arvizo, mother of the accusing teen in the case, to take the Fifth
Amendment rather than testify.

Oxman, I’m told, also started an independent investigation into Arvizo’s
possible welfare fraud while the criminal case was in court, against
Mesereau’s wishes.

But Oxman and friends are not licensed to practice in New York, where
Michael Jackson is currently being sued for $48 million by Darien Dash,
first cousin of hip-hop entrepreneur Damon Dash. And he can’t practice in
Louisiana, where Jackson faces possible contempt charges if no one shows up
at the next hearing in that case on August 12.

Meantime, you can disregard reports that Jackson is in Berlin, or about to
attend his father’s birthday party there tonight.

My sources say Michael remains in Bahrain, where he’s moonwalking for a
Saudi prince who, he hopes, will come to his financial rescue.

At the same time, Randy Jackson - Michael’s brother - continues attempts to
re-secure his power position with the pop star. Word is he’s returning to
New York to continue negotiations with private hedge fund Fortress
Investments to get Michael some more cash. The $3.3 million Fortress
advanced Jackson back in April is thought to be gone by now.

Source: FOX News

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