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Singer Usher has asked a Fulton County judge to sanction Atlanta attorney Alcide Honoré and rule against him in a dispute over a $700,000 loan. Usher’s lawyers filed the request on Nov. 9 in Fulton County Superior Court. They say Honoré ignored an order to account for the money. Honoré has denied wrongdoing.
The request arrives almost exactly one year after Usher filed the case on Nov. 14, 2025. A court has not proven any of the allegations.
How the Usher loan dispute began
According to the filing, Usher lent $1.7 million to help launch Homage ATL, a planned upscale restaurant and lounge on Piedmont Road in Buckhead. The venue never opened. Usher says he treated the money as a loan, not an investment, and expected it back.
He received $1 million in August 2025. Usher says Honoré later told him that repaying the remaining $700,000 would not be easy because the money had gone to other expenses.
The suit also names producer and songwriter Bryan-Michael Cox, Keith Thomas, Charles Hughes and related defendants. Days after the filing, Cox said his 27 year friendship with Usher remained intact. He described himself as a passive minority shareholder, according to TheGrio.
What the new filing asks the judge to do
Usher wants the court to confirm that $1.7 million reached Honoré’s law firm trust account on Jan. 8, 2025. He also wants a finding that $700,000 never came back. His lawyers point to a wire confirmation from The UR Trust with a memo describing a loan for a new club.
Honoré has denied receiving the funds. Usher’s lawyers reject that claim. They argue he has stalled the case and skipped a Sept. 28 order to account for the money. In addition, they want the judge to dismiss Honoré’s counterclaim and cover Usher’s legal fees.
Where Usher’s lawyers say the money went
The filing cites bank records that show transfers out of the trust account. These include payments to a title company and a wire to Bank Leumi in Israel. They also include $400,000 sent on June 9, 2025, to a man the filing identifies as Honoré’s brother. Honoré disputes Usher’s account, and a court has not tested these claims.
What a default judgment would mean
If the judge grants the request, Honoré would face a default judgment on liability for every count. As a result, the court would treat him as responsible without a full trial on those claims. A later step would set the amount owed.
Lessons for Atlanta business owners
Atlanta runs on relationships, and many Black owned ventures begin with a well known friend writing a check. The case shows how quickly such deals can sour when paperwork is vague and a project stalls. Entrepreneurs and the stars who back them can take one lesson from it. Put every loan and investment in writing, and track where the money goes.
A year in, Usher wants the judge to end the wait. The court may grant a default judgment. Alternatively, Honoré may produce the accounting the court ordered. Either outcome could decide where the missing $700,000 ends up.
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