San Francisco Attorney Sues Nixon Peabody Los Angeles for Sexual Discrimination
With all the layoffs rippling through the Biglaw community, we are likely to see more lawsuits from attorneys directed at their former employers.
Right now, Nixon Peabody is in the spotlight. A former associate is suing the firm. The National Law Journal reports:
Henry Har, now an associate in Holland & Knight’s San Francisco office, claims that he was wrongly fired from Nixon Peabody in 2008 because of his sex and gender, and because he is Asian-American. …Har, a graduate of New York University School of Law, originally worked in Nixon Peabody’s San Francisco office and moved to the Los Angeles location in September 2007. His complaint states that the Los Angeles office had a “drastically different working environment” from the San Francisco office and that attorneys in the office “demonstrated inappropriate and offense behavior towards ethnic minorities, women and homosexuals.”
The firm responds after the jump.
Nixon Peabody furnished the NLJ with a flat denial of Har’s claims:
“The firm is committed to providing an open and inclusive workplace. It does not comment on pending litigation, but resolutely denies Mr. Har’s charge of discrimination and will vigorously respond to it in court.” The law firm also provided a link to its diversity page on its Web site.
A link to the diversity page? Isn’t that a little like saying “I have lots of gay friends.”
There are more juicy details of Har’s complaint in the NLJ story.
But of course, there are two sides to any firing. The NLJ also reports the stated reason for Har’s departure:
Har was fired from the Nixon Peabody in February 2008, according to his complaint, which states that the reason the firm gave for his termination was because he assaulted a fellow associate at a firm-sponsored happy hour. Har, who denies the assault against attorney Rudy Salo occurred, described the incident as a “verbal spat” that transpired after Salo accused him of stealing his chair and sitting on his jacket during happy hour.
And because we know our readers care about this stuff:
Salo is a graduate of Georgetown University Law Center and is an associate in the public finance group of Nixon Peabody’s Los Angeles office.
Could this just be another NYU v. GULC deathmatch that got out of hand? I can’t wait to see Nixon Peabody’s motion to dismiss.
Former associate sues Nixon Peabody, alleges sexual discrimination [National Law Journal]
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Comments
Are there layoffs at Cahill?
non-freezing firms
http://abovethelaw.com/community/
1 - There appear to have been layoffs at Cahill, but details are sketchy at this time. More news should be forthcoming shortly.
Har will lose here - because EVERYONE'S A WINNER AT NIXON PEABODY!!!
It's all about the team;
It's all about respect;
It all revolves around integrity....
good for him.
DLA Piper has laid off over 200 people. There are 7 more confirmed so far this week, with an insider projecting 15 more by the end of the week. DLA piper will not admit they have lost business due to their obscene rates, they are calling the layoffs performance based. Yeah Right.
Currently a class action suit based on the profile of those laid off is being explored by a more succesful law firm --one that did not cancel its Holiday Party and Freeze pay.
a quick googling of "autoadmit" and "lawsuit" might be instructive for some...
6 - How could you sue someone for talking about the layoffs at Cahill?
what a thin-skinned mama's boy
Apparently everyone's a winner at Nixon Peabody except gay asian males.
what a joke. hardy har har.
WHITE GUYS WITH ASIAN GUYS!
Ok; seriously, people? There was already a post on the Cahill layoffs. Could we knock it off now and leave it alone? If you have any questions on Cahill layoffs, can you please just ask them on the Cahill layoff post, without invading every single other thread?
Nixon Peabody = TTT racist place.
More DLA news, please.
Any other info on how Nixon is doing? It'd be nice to have a run-down of how many partners firms made, what bonuses are so far, layoffs, salary freezes, etc. in a big spread sheet.
15 - I'm pretty sure Nixon's dead, but Ron Howard just made a movie about him.
16: incorrect. Ron Howard made a lame and boring movie about a British guy interviewing Nixon. Only Ron Howard would make a movie with such a boring concept. Bio pics are borings, but movies about interviews? What are we coming to?
Unlike in past years, DLA did not release partner reviews to associates before January 1. Does this have anything to do with layoffs?
DLA Piper announced a profit increase from last year, so they appear to be doing okay.
How does a death match get out of hand? I thought that's how death matches start.
20 -- good point.
13 = pussy
5= no offered at DLA. The post was repeated in another story. Get over it.
22 = Laid off Cahill associate.
I don't think 16 has seen the film, Nixon/Frost.
Though seemingly quite banal, the subject of the interview itself is rich, but also serves as a gateway to larger political and social issues.
Then again, perhaps 16 just doesn't have the capacity to appreciate it to begin with.
prev post --> 16=17
DLA = worst firm ever.
28 = Laid off Cahill associate.
DLA is awesome!
27=DEFINITELY no-offered by DLA.
LOL @ bitter DLA Piper rejects trying to smear a great firm.
So, does Henry Har's termination from Nixon Peabody mean he is no longer a winner?
Not suprising, the LA office of Nixon has a good ol' boys feel to it.
I fucked several DLA partners up the ass, I was fucking one in his office, he jizzed on his desk after I shot my load up his ass doggie style
Since when do gay posts make you cool??? Good for you 34, I'm sure you really showed him.
2006 Ex-CWT slut associate here.
I used my pussy to get into CWT.. I was TTT and definitely not qualified...but you use what you have right!
DLA piper is just a firm like any others. Trying to save its ass while pretending to be doing great. Good Pay if you can get it, better yet if you can keep it.
What a stupid tool... yeah, wonder how long it'll be before that idiot gets himself shown the door at HK
Congrats Henry! You've just done more damages to your reputation that anything that Nixon Peabody ever did. Besides, they have a THEME SONG! How dare you sue someone with a theme song. (And Elie, you really should include an update with the Theme Song to those who are new to ATL)
Why hasn't ATL reported on the merger of Echert and West Virginia firm, Hendrickson & Long??
http://74.125.95.132/search?q=cache:DJBDdVtYyEcJ:news.moneycentral.msn.com/provider/providerarticle.aspx%3Ffeed%3DAP%26date%3D20081230%26id%3D9479636+ECKERT+SEAMANS&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=6&gl=us
Why hasn't ATL reported on the merger of Echert and West Virginia firm, Hendrickson & Long??
http://74.125.95.132/search?q=cache:DJBDdVtYyEcJ:news.moneycentral.msn.com/provider/providerarticle.aspx%3Ffeed%3DAP%26date%3D20081230%26id%3D9479636+ECKERT+SEAMANS&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=6&gl=us
Why hasn't ATL reported on the merger of Echert and West Virginia firm, Hendrickson & Long??
http://74.125.95.132/search?q=cache:DJBDdVtYyEcJ:news.moneycentral.msn.com/provider/providerarticle.aspx%3Ffeed%3DAP%26date%3D20081230%26id%3D9479636+ECKERT+SEAMANS&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=6&gl=us
Nixon Peeonsomebody edited their original news release. Their original comment was "Har, har, har, har, har ... whew ... stop ... har, har, har ... stop ... that's a good one."
Eckert Semen sucks. And they've been frozen for years..
39: Right on. I wonder if their SJ motion will be in song...
Harry Har, what a shitty name.
Good on him--at least now everyone will realize what a horrible place NP is to work at, and what a farce it is that it managed to land on that Fortune 100 list.
Mere coincidence that NP firm management just announced that they won't be applying for the Fortune Best Companies to Work For list?
Mere coincidence that NP firm management just announced that they won't be applying for the Fortune Best Companies to Work For list?
Don't worry 49. Superjew will deal with this.
Yes, because there are no gay people in LA.
The problem with having an office in San Francisco is that you have to employ the type of people who live in San Francisco. This, to say the least, causes problems.
"Me so horny. Me love you long time." --Henry Har to Rudy Salo
I can't believe the post doesn't make an "everyone's a winner" joke...Lat would have :(
25 YOU are a douche. Save the shallow academic meditations for conversations with your 1L buddies before Torts, weenis.
53, classic.
I'm betting that there was some shifty oneHole at work here. They are behind everything.
Kirkland New York is canning attorneys. Do a story.
my ass is laying off crap. do a story.
Where's JUICY guy?
58 - what levels, and what practice groups?
"Salo accused him of stealing his chair and sitting on his jacket during happy hour."
and by "jacket," you mean "face". . .
61- all levels, practice groups are mainly whoring, ball licking and skin flute, but it has been reported that possibly the muff diving group has been affected as well.
@6,
I think what those people did to Heidi Iravani and Brittan Heller on AutoAdmit was terrible.
Although I don't understand what that has to do with anything on this post.
Elie, some of my best friends are fat... some of them are also coons, jigaboos, and porch monkeys. Wait, those are all Negroes.
elie is racist.
I grew up in Compton and scuffing someones sneakers was a big deal. People would be killed over stuff like that.
Jacking a chair and seating on a jacket is the Law Firm equivalent of scuffing a Puma or Nike Air (or BKs or LA Gear back in the day). Peabody was right when they fired the china-man. Such behavior should not be tolerated.
Har was probably a habitual line-stepper. He probably would have ended up peeing on a partner's rug if he wasnt kept in line.
47 = no offered NP sa
Don't you people have jobs?
Really. Y'all need to get a life.
Grisham and Turow, take a break. Paging McMurtry! Watch for a roman a clef if the truth takes a tumble off Mulholland Drive. Then the docupic: Daniel Dae Kim as Har, a Ledger avatar as Salo. One way or another, folks, the truth on this one will "come out".
NP is a huge farce. Harassment is rampant and so-called investigations are pathetic.