| Alexandra Stan vs. Marcel Prodan | |
|---|---|
 Alexandra Stan (pictured in 2011) initiated the lawsuit against Marcel Prodan. | |
| Court | Constanța |
| Full case name | Alexandra Stan vs. Marcel Prodan |
| Decided | 21 December 2016 |
| Keywords | |
| Domestic violence | |
Alexandra Stan vs. Marcel Prodan[1] was a 2013 Romanian lawsuit in which Romanian singer Alexandra Stan accused her impresario Marcel Prodan and his label Maan Studio of blackmail, bodily harm, common assault and robbery. In June 2013, Stan and Prodan were travelling in a car on Autostrada Soarelui between Constanța and Valu lui Traian. Members of the Romanian traffic police found them fighting on the shoulder of the motorway; Stan's face was visibly bruised and she was taken to the hospital. She later appeared on national television, generating media attention in Romania.
According to the singer, the incident occurred after she asked Prodan for her earnings, to which he reacted violently. Several hearings in Constanța Court were scheduled as part of the lawsuit; during one, Prodan testified that he had acted in self-defense after Stan hit him in his car and threatened to commit suicide. While Stan's accusations of blackmail and bodily harm were deemed groundless by the judges in 2014, Prodan received a seven-month suspended sentence for common assault in February 2016 and was fined damages.
On appeal from both sides, the case was handed over to Constanța Court of Appeal under the case number 5946/212/2015.[2] On 21 December 2016, the court denied Stan's accusations due to the lack of evidence; however, Prodan's sentence was confirmed and his fines increased to €25,000. Music critics noted the impact of the legal case on the singer's later work. Furthermore, Stan initiated the anti-domestic violence campaign Nu bate! Mai bine cântă! (Don't hit! Better sing!) in late 2013.