On Monday, a number of court documents related to Gottwald’s defamation suit against Kesha were made public, including depositions from pop stars such as Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, and Pink. Gottwald’s team tried to get out in front of the revelations contained in those documents by sending out a press release about what it called Sebert’s “bogus” lawsuit: highlighting emailed plans by Sebert’s managers to give Gottwald a “public execution” in the press, resurfacing apparent inconsistencies in Sebert’s statements about the 2005 night when Gottwald allegedly raped her, and spotlighting Perry’s denial that Gottwald had raped her despite what other people in the music business had heard rumored.

None of those assertions should shock observers of the case. All along, publicity was clearly in the tool kit of things Sebert was using to try and end her contract with Gottwald: Rather than requesting a criminal investigation for rape, her civil case—and the public-pressure campaign #FreeKesha—alleged a pattern of vicious manipulation and some physical abuse by Dr. Luke over the years. From the start, some of her allegations contradicted what she’d previously said about her longtime mentor and boss, and her lawyers explained such inconsistencies as resulting from her earlier fear of Gottwald’s reprisal. As for the notion that Gottwald raped Perry, Perry herself has never said anything of the sort publicly.

Reading through the recently unsealed depositions in the case, a picture emerges of Gottwald as someone whose reputation long preceded him in the music industry. Said Clarkson: “In general, I don’t know anyone that likes him … People have said he’s sleazy.” The Interscope executive John Janick (who Gaga says spread the rumor that Gottwald raped Perry, which Janick denies ever having done), testified that Gottwald is known for being “difficult.” Pink signed an affidavit saying she stopped working with Gottwald after 2006 for reasons unrelated to Kesha’s accusations, which would seem to support Pink’s public statement that Dr. Luke is “not a good person.” Taio Cruz and Avril Lavigne also said they chose to stop working with Gottwald before Sebert’s lawsuit.

Of course, a general negative reputation is different from a specific series of abuses such as the ones Sebert has alleged. Whatever the truth is, Sebert has not been able to exit her contract with him, and now she’s fighting to not pay millions of dollars in damages for defamation for having tried to do so. Part of Gottwald’s legal strategy has been to paint Kesha as the problematic party, the person who was inappropriate in a workplace where songs about sex and drugs were being crafted. A deposition from Dr. Luke’s studio engineer Clint Gibbs recounts him feeling uncomfortable at Kesha showing off “dick pix” she had on her phone, including from the superstar DJ Calvin Harris. Gibbs, who told lawyers that he’s a friend of Gottwald’s, also mentions that he’s been involved with the producer’s recent project: building a bigger and better studio.