(CNN) A federal judge refused to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the City of Chicago against actor Jussie Smollett, court documents show.

A legal battle is being fought in federal court as Chicago seeks to recover more than $130,000 to cover police overtime during the investigation of Smollett's report of a hate crime attack in January. The actor has refused for months to pay the city and his attorneys have said he "will not be intimidated into paying."

Attorneys for the former "Empire" actor filed a motion to throw out the lawsuit, saying that filing a report does not typically result such in such an extensive investigation. They also said Smollett could have not been aware of how much time and money police would spend investigating his allegations, court documents said.

Smollett, who is gay and black, claimed earlier this year to have been the target of a hate crime. After police investigated the case for weeks, they said investigators believed Smollett staged the attack to bolster his profile and career.

Tuesday, US District Judge Virginia Kendall denied Smollett's request to dismiss the lawsuit, allowing the case to proceed to the discovery phase.

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