Judge relents on jail threat for singer Anita Baker in dispute over royalties owed ex-husband

No jail for Anita Baker over royalty dispute

DETROIT — Anita Baker and her attorneys are working on an agreement to help determine how much the Grammy-winning singer’s ex-husband is owed in music royalties as part of a divorce settlement.

Baker was ordered to a Detroit court Friday after the 52-year-old singer missed a deadline Wednesday to sign related documents and declined again to sign them Thursday. The judge threatened to jail Baker if she didn’t sign the papers.

The documents would have empowered a court-appointed expert to seek information from the record companies involved on how much Walter Bridgforth is owed.

Wayne County Chief Family Court Judge Lita Masini Popke has relented on her threat to jail Baker. Popke has instructed the singer, attorneys for both sides and music contracts expert Howard Hertz to work out the agreement.