After being accused of sexual assault, Nick Carter is countersuing his alleged victims.

Content warning: This story includes descriptions of sexual assault that may be distressing to some readers.

After being accused of sexual assault, former boy bander Nick Carter has countersued the two women at the centre of the allegations.

In December 2022, Shannon Ruth sued the singer for allegedly sexually assaulting her after a concert in 2001. Carter, 43, countersued for defamation in February 2023, and named a second accuser – Melissa Schuman – who claims he raped her in 2003.

Ruth asked the judge to dismiss Carter’s defamation countersuit under a Nevada statute that is designed to prevent lawsuits that are filed as retaliation against free speech.

However, when Carter appeared in court on April 12, the judge denied Ruth’s request, allowing Carter’s case to move forward, reports the Review Journal.

Ruth – who was not in court on April 12 – filed a civil sexual battery lawsuit against the singer in December 2022, alleging that he assaulted her after a 2001 show in Washington when she was 17, and infected her with human papillomavirus (HPV).

"He told plaintiff she would go to jail if she told anyone what happened between them," Ruth’s lawyers alleged at the time. 

"He said that he was Nick Carter, and that he had the power to do that. Due to his various threats, plaintiff did not report Carter’s crimes for many years."

Watch: Nick Carter moves forward with counterclaim. Post continues below.

The other woman named in Carter’s countersuit, Schuman, first went public with her allegations – which Carter and his lawyer vehemently deny – in a 2017 blog post, and says she faced “extraordinary backlash” for doing so.

In her suit, obtained by Rolling Stone, Schulman claims Carter used "his role, status, and power as a well-known singer to gain access to, groom, manipulate, exploit, and sexually assault her".

She also claims Carter continued to 'manipulate and torment' her in the time that followed, claiming he bombarded her with phone calls, demanding to speak with her. The suit also claims she has a text from the singer asking, "Why did you make me do that?"

In a statement, Schulman claimed, "I’ve faced extraordinary backlash for standing up for myself; I am not the first, however my intention is that I am the last."

In his countersuit documents, Carter has taken aim at both women. 

"Carter will not allow himself to be smeared in this way," reads the lawsuit, according to the LA Times.

"Protecting one’s reputation and name by calling a liar a liar is not victim blaming or bullying. It is simply telling the truth."

Carter’s attorney, Liane K. Wakayama, has called the accusations a PR stunt that 'won’t shake Nick from his determination' to hold the alleged victim and her 'co-conspirators to account'.

This isn’t the first time Carter’s name has been linked to assault allegations, with his own brother, the late Aaron Carter, making accusations against the boybander.

Before Carter’s younger brother Aaron died in November 2022, The Backstreet Boy took an AVO out on his younger brother, after which Aaron made strong claims against his sibling.

'I have never been accused of rape multiple times. I wasn’t accused of beating Paris Hilton. Who’s VIOLENT?' Aaron tweeted.

Aaron later called his older brother a 'serial rapist' in an interview just before his death.

Carter has denied physically abusing Hilton.

If you or someone you know is at risk of violence, contact: 1800 RESPECT.

Feature Image: Review Journal.