Facing fallout over N-word admission, Paula Deen replaces her lawyers
Celebrity chef Paula Deen has hired new lawyers to defend her in an employment bias suit filed by a former manager at a restaurant owned by Deen and her brother.
Deen will be represented by lawyers at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, including Washington, D.C., managing partner Grace Speights, according to The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times and the Associated Press. The firm replaces former lead attorneys at Oliver Maner in Savannah, Ga. Another firm representing Deen—Gillen Withers and Lake in Savannah—is also apparently off the case.
New local counsel for Deen is the firm of Weiner, Hearouse, Weitz, Greenberg & Shawe.
Deen’s case made national news after she admitted in a deposition that she had previously used the N-word. The Food Network has not renewed her contract.
Prior coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “In deposition, Paula Deen says ‘of course’ she has used the N-word, but it was long ago”
ABAJournal.com: “Lawyer in Paula Deen case says white plaintiff had no standing to pursue race claims”
ABAJournal.com: “Lawyer defends tweet about ‘doing Paula Deen in a strongly metaphorical sense’ “
