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The Seventh Circuit affirmed the dismissal of former nanny Scarlett Pavlovich’s Wisconsin lawsuit against Neil Gaiman on June 29, 2026, because New Zealand was the more appropriate forum. That ruling addressed where the case could be heard—not whether Pavlovich’s allegations of sexual assault and trafficking-related violations were true. Gaiman has denied engaging in non-consensual sex.
What Pavlovich alleged
In civil lawsuits filed in February 2025, Scarlett Pavlovich alleged that Neil Gaiman sexually assaulted her, including raping her, while she worked as a nanny for his family in New Zealand in 2022. Her filings also asserted human-trafficking-related violations. These are allegations in civil complaints, not findings that a court established as fact. The Associated Press reported on the filing and the allegations on February 3, 2025.
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Pavlovich sought at least $7 million in damages, according to the Associated Press’s 2025 report. That figure is the amount sought in her complaint, not a court award or a verified measure of loss.
Gaiman’s response
The Associated Press reported that Gaiman denied ever engaging in non-consensual sex. The allegations remain disputed; the Wisconsin dismissal did not resolve that dispute.
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Why the Wisconsin lawsuit was dismissed
District court: New Zealand was the more appropriate forum
On October 3, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin dismissed the claims against Gaiman on forum non conveniens grounds. That doctrine allows a court to dismiss a case when another country is the more appropriate place for it to be heard. The order identified New Zealand as the more appropriate forum for allegations concerning conduct there and recorded that Gaiman and Amanda Palmer agreed to submit to New Zealand jurisdiction and testify there. Read the district court’s October 3, 2025 order.
Seventh Circuit: dismissal affirmed
On June 29, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit affirmed the Wisconsin dismissal. It concluded that New Zealand was an available and adequate forum and that the district court had properly balanced the relevant interests. The Seventh Circuit opinion concerns the choice of forum; it does not decide whether the alleged abuse occurred.
What the rulings do—and do not—establish
- They establish a procedural outcome in the U.S. case: the Wisconsin action was dismissed because New Zealand was considered the appropriate forum, and the Seventh Circuit affirmed that decision.
- They do not establish that the allegations were false or true: neither court decided the merits of Pavlovich’s claims.
- They do not establish the status of a New Zealand case: the cited court opinions and reporting do not confirm whether Pavlovich later filed a civil proceeding there or what its status might be.
Related U.S. lawsuits
In a February 9, 2026 report, the Associated Press said federal judges had dismissed three related lawsuits involving Pavlovich, Gaiman, and Palmer by that date. That report predates the Seventh Circuit’s later decision affirming the Wisconsin dismissal; it does not change the limited, procedural nature of that appellate ruling. See the Associated Press report on the U.S. dismissals.
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