A five-year old sexual assault lawsuit against Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is heading to trial. The trial, however, won’t happen for another nine months.
Via Joseph Hoyt of the _Dallas Morning News_, a judge [denied on Thursday](https://www.dallasnews.com/news/courts/2025/10/02/dallas-county-judge-allows-jerry-jones-sex-assault-lawsuit-to-proceed-to-trial/) a motion for summary judgment filed by Jones. It keeps the case on track for a jury trial.
The plaintiff claims that Jones sexually assaulted her in 2018, during a private event at AT&T Stadium after a Cowboys game. The case was filed in 2020, dismissed in 2022, and reinstated on appeal.
The trial date has been delayed on multiple occasions.
A motion for summary judgment arises from the basic argument that there is no need for a jury to sift through the facts of the case and make a decision as to what did, or didn’t, happen. In a situation like this, where witness credibility will be critical, it’s very difficult to persuade a judge to not allow a jury to hear and see all evidence before deliberating toward a verdict.
The fact that the judge conducted a hearing on Thursday and issued a ruling the same day underscores the basic reality that, in this case, the conflicting positions (the plaintiff claims Jones did it, and he denies it) should be sorted out by a jury.
The case could settle at any time. Often, the denial of a motion for summary judgment becomes the spark for moving the lawsuit toward a resolution.
Trial is currently set for July 20, 2026.