FKA Twigs Sues Shia LaBeouf Over 'Illegal' Settlement NDA

FKA Twigs Sues Shia LaBeouf to Void 'Illegal' NDA Under California's STAND Act

Tahliah Debrett Barnett claims the actor is using a settlement agreement to silence her about sexual abuse following her recent interviews for the album EUSEXUA.

Marcus J. Delany

Mar 25, 2026, 7:04 PM PT · 2 min read

FKA Twigs — Photo: Bobo Boom / CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

THE RUNDOWN

Barnett filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles to void a settlement-based NDA.
She claims the agreement violates the California STAND Act protecting survivor speech.
Shia LaBeouf previously initiated arbitration alleging Barnett breached their confidentiality deal.
Barnett seeks a judicial declaration and is not requesting additional monetary damages.

In late March 2026, Tahliah Debrett Barnett, known professionally as FKA Twigs, filed a new lawsuit in Los Angeles County Superior Court against actor Shia LaBeouf. The legal action seeks to invalidate a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) that was part of a settlement reached in July 2025 following Barnett’s 2020 sexual battery lawsuit. Barnett alleges the NDA violates California’s STAND Act, a law designed to prevent the use of confidentiality agreements to silence survivors of sexual misconduct.

The dispute escalated after LaBeouf initiated private arbitration against Barnett, claiming she breached their confidential settlement during her press tour for the album EUSEXUA. According to reports from The Cut and TMZ, LaBeouf alleged that Barnett’s public comments about her past experiences with abuse violated the terms of their agreement. In response, Barnett’s new filing argues that the STAND Act (Senate Bill 820) makes such provisions unenforceable when they concern the disclosure of facts related to sexual assault or harassment.

Barnett is not seeking monetary damages in this latest filing; rather, she is asking for a judicial declaration that the NDA is void. Her legal team asserts that the agreement was used as a tool to "muzzle" her and prevent her from advocating for other survivors. This case represents one of the first major challenges to the enforceability of private settlements under California’s expanded protections for those speaking out about sexual violence.