Paul Haggis files appeal against rape accuser

Paul Haggis has filed an appeal against a judgment which dismissed his lawsuit against a woman who accused him of rape.

Breest sued Haggis in December last year, claiming the latter had raped her after she accepted his offer to drive her home following a film premiere in 2013. Haggis’ case was dismissed, but Breest has been allowed to move ahead with a countersuit regarding the alleged assault. Haggis has denied the claims.

Oscar-winning filmmaker Haggis’ lawyers informed pagesix.com that accuser Haleigh Breest’s team “confronted him with a draft complaint containing false and scandalous accusations that they threatened to publicly file unless he paid her $9 million”. So, Haggis submitted an appeal claiming “severe emotional distress”.