Brenay Kennard, a social media influencer with a large
following on TikTok and Instagram, will have to pay $40,000 while the appeal
process continues in a lawsuit where she was accused of having an affair with
her manager, Tim Montague. 

During a hearing on Tuesday in Durham County, a judge ruled Kennard must pay $40,000 to secure a $1.75 million judgment while Kennard appeals the verdict. 

This hearing allowed both sides to make arguments regarding a judicial bond determined from a lawsuit in November. It’s one of the most talked-about cases regarding “alienation of affection” in recent memory.

In November, a lawsuit filed in Durham County Court accused Kennard of seducing and having an affair with her manager Tim Montague, a Durham man. The suit was brought in civil court by the manager’s now ex-wife, Akira Montague.

Akira Montague claimed, among other things the affair caused her mental anguish, damage to her health, and deprived her kids of a two-parent household.

Kennard spent more than an hour testifying on Tuesday about her bank statements and spending after the November trial. She said the allegations have negatively impacted her ability to make money from online brand deals. Kennard, who says she is responsible for most of the bills in her household, noted that the case, and an associated cyberstalking charge, have prevented her from getting a job outside social media including as a substitute teacher in Wake County. 

Montague’s lawyer argued that Kennard’s lifestyle has remained the same and that she continues to spend at restaurants and stores, despite having the judgment against her. 

“Since the allegations that have been upon me: stalker, a jezebel, a liar, a cheater, all of those things, it really just doesn’t look good to the public eye as far as these brands I used to get,” Kennard said.

Akira Montague and her mother testified during Tuesday’s hearing.

Kennard’s lawyer asked for a $10,000 undertaking, or commitment, while the appeals process of the verdict continues. Judge Hoyt Tessener sided with Akira Montague’s request for a $40,000 undertaking.

“The evidence presented shows income and expenses to be approximately the same before and after the judgement,” said Tessener. “The judgement had no meaningful impact on the defendant.”

Kennard has nearly 3 million followers on TikTok and 274,000 followers on Instagram and usually posts content around cooking, makeup and trying food. Her own content was cited as evidence in the case.

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