Jada Pinkett Smith is seeking nearly $49,000 in legal fees from Bilaal Salaam after a judge largely dismissed his $3million emotional distress lawsuit against her.
Actress Jada, 54, filed the request following an April 13 ruling that struck out most of the claims brought by Bilaal, who had described himself as a longtime friend of her husband Will Smith.
According to court documents obtained by Page Six, Jada’s legal team argued she is entitled to recover her attorneys’ fees in full, stating the costs are reasonable.
In a separate filing, her lawyers also asked the court to rule entirely in her favour, awarding Bilaal nothing and granting “any other and further relief the Court considers just and proper”.
Bilaal filed the lawsuit in November 2025, alleging Jada confronted him at a party in 2021 and issued threats after he discussed her personal life.
He claimed she told him he would “end up missing or catch a bullet” if he continued “telling her personal business”.
The complaint further alleged Jada led a “retaliatory campaign” against him after he refused to assist with crisis management following Will’s on-stage assault of Chris Rock at the 2022 Academy Awards.
Bilaal claimed threats were made over a planned memoir, alleging he was urged to “work something out” and to “end this feud before you get physically hurt”.
He said the situation caused damage to his reputation, deteriorating health and financial losses, describing Jada’s actions as “malicious, intentional, and reckless conduct”.
In response, Jada rejected the allegations.
She said the claims were “nonsense” and argued they were “false, uncorroborated, and made to generate attention as part of an ongoing public campaign of harassment directed at” her and her family.
Jada also accused Bilaal of being “fixated” on her family and said the lawsuit was punishing her for “constitutionally protected speech on a matter of public interest about her family”.
Court records show Jada and Bilaal are scheduled to return for a case management conference on May 13, with a further hearing on the motion for attorney fees set for May 18.
Jada has previously spoken publicly about her relationship with Will, revealing in a 2023 interview with People they had been separated for seven years.
She said: “We’ve been doing some really heavy-duty work together.
“We just got deep love for each other, and we are going to figure out what that looks like for us.”
