Law Firm Sues Secretary Who Claims Partner Raped Her
A New York law firm has beat a secretary to the courthouse with a lawsuit claiming her allegations of rape and sexual harassment are false.
The law firm of Bivona & Cohen says in its suit that secretary Windy Richards first made the rape allegations against a partner in a meeting called to discuss her frequent absences from work, the New York Law Journal reports. It says she has threatened to file suit unless the firm paid her $9 million.
The firm seeks a declaratory judgment that Richards was not sexually harassed and that she may be fired for lying about her Social Security number on a job application. The suit claims Richards submitted the incorrect information to hide a previous drug charge, according to the story.
Richards offered to perform a lap dance for a partner with a drinking problem, Joseph Figliolo, in an effort to “exploit his vulnerability,” according to the suit. It claims Richards was not raped during the incident and she bragged about it afterwards.
The suit also seeks damages for defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
Representing the law firm is Ronald Green of Epstein, Becker & Green. He also filed a pre-emptive suit on behalf of Fox News commentator Bill O’Reilly in 2004 that claimed a woman’s sexual harassment allegations against him were false. The action led to a later confidential settlement.
Employment lawyer Debra Katz told the legal publication that such pre-emptive suits are risky because they may be viewed as retaliatory acts. “They subject the employer to more liability for retaliation,” she said.
