A Manhattan appeals court has dealt pop singer Kesha a setback in her ongoing legal battle with her former producer, finding a lower court properly denied her bid to amend her filings to allege breach-of-contract claims.

In a unanimous ruling issued on Tuesday, a five-judge panel of the Appellate Division, First Department, said that Kesha's proposed counterclaims against Lukasz Gottwald, who is known as Dr. Luke, were “palpably insufficient” and that her bid to get out of contracts with Gottwald's production and publishing companies on the grounds that performance would be impractical because of the acrimonious relationship between the parties is undermined by the fact that she admitted that she continued performing under the contracts.

Justices David Friedman, Judith Gische, Peter Tom, Cynthia Kern and Anil Singh joined on the decision.

Gottwald is represented by O'Melveny & Myers attorneys Leah Godesky and James Pearl.

Kesha is represented by Christine Lepera of Mitchell Silberg & Knupp.

Gottwald filed a breach-of-contract suit against Kesha, whose full name is Kesha Rose Sebert, in 2014, alleging that she broke the terms of her recording agreement and that he was defamed by her accusations that Gottwald abused her.  

Kesha fired back with counterclaims that Gottwald sexually assaulted her and that she was the victim of discrimination, but last year Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Shirley Werner Kornreich dismissed her claims.