Jay-Z's legal team takes new legal strategy, calls Jane Doe's assault complaint too old

Jay-Z's legal strategy is shifting.

Alex Spiro, a lawyer for the rap mogul filed a pre-motion letter Monday arguing that a recent lawsuit alleging Jay-Z raped a minor in 2000 could not proceed as is because the incident was too old.

The complaint, filed on behalf of Jane Doe against disgraced music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs in October and amended later to name Jay-Z, uses the Victims of Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Act (GMV) which, Spiro argued, is not retroactive, meaning it cannot apply to incidents taking place before it was passed. Since the law was not enacted until December of 2000 and the assault is alleged to have taken place three months before in September, to let it proceed would "violate both state and federal due process protections," he writes.

Additionally, Spiro argues use of the Child Victims Act (CVA) is illegitimate since the incident also lies outside both the original window and the revival periods for that law.

Layered on top of the statute of limitations claim is an argument by Spiro that the GMV requires an accuser to show the assault happened within New York City. Using details from Jane Doe's complaint ? that she was driven 20 minutes from Radio City Music Hall to an estate with a U-shaped driveway ? Spiro asserts the incident could not have taken place within the five boroughs.

Jay-Z urges 'criminal complaint' for rape allegation: Why was civil lawsuit filed?

Spiro's argument is just the latest in an ongoing attempt by Jay-Z's team to have the case dropped. The rapper, who is accused of committing the assault alongside Diddy, has vehemently denied the allegations and urged the accuser to come forward with her identity.

"My wife and I will have to sit our children down, one of whom is at the age where her friends will surely see the press and ask questions about the nature of these claims, and explain the cruelty and greed of people," the rapper said in a statement at the time.

On Thursday, a judge ruled the Alabama woman can remain anonymous. She has spoken to the press without sharing her name, acknowledging that there were inconsistencies in her story but standing by the accusation.

Jay-Z, Sean 'Diddy' Combs rape accuser says she made 'mistakes' in her account: Report

Jay-Z has also taken aim at her lawyer, Tony Buzbee, who represents several women bringing civil suits against Diddy. "I have no idea how you have come to be such a horrible human Mr. Buzbee," the "Empire State of Mind" rapper wrote in a previously shared statement, "but I promise you I have seen your kind many times over."

The "Empire State of Mind" rapper has accused Buzbee of failing to properly vet Jane Doe's case and of pressuring clients to bring suits. Buzbee has denied those claims and the parties are now ensnared in a legal spat of their own.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jay-Z accuser's complaint is too old, rapper's legal team says