The New York Times Spills the Beans on the Casey Greenfield / Jeffrey Toobin Affair
The story of the tangled relationship between Casey Greenfield, a rising star in New York legal circles, and Jeffrey Toobin, arguably the nation’s leading legal journalist, has gone mainstream. Over the long weekend, the New York Times wrote an 1,800-word story on their affair. What juicy, previously unreported tidbits did the Times unearth?
Again, from the august pages of the Gray Lady:
Mr. Toobin ultimately acquiesced to a paternity test that confirmed he was the father of the boy, who is nicknamed Rory. He contested portions of her suit. The tabloids zeroed back in. In February 2010, the custody case was heard in Manhattan Family Court. It was not resolved until late last year, with Ms. Greenfield receiving full custody of Rory, including the right to make all pivotal decisions in his upbringing and schooling. She briefly represented herself in the remaining phase of litigation, a dispute over the amount of child support to which she was entitled; barring an 11th-hour settlement, the case is scheduled to return to Manhattan Family Court next month, this time with Mr. Labby litigating….
Rory spends every other weekend with Mr. Toobin and his family; he also visits in the summer and on some holidays. Ms. Greenfield and Mr. Toobin have not sparred over the time-sharing arrangement, but their parting of the ways, unlike Ms. Greenfield’s 2006 divorce from the Los Angeles-based screenwriter Matt Manfredi after less than two years of marriage, continues to be less than amicable.
I can understand why Toobin would harbor anger towards Greenfield. What’s more puzzling is why he’d quibble over child support. He probably makes six figures from his New Yorker gig, six figures from his television work, and who knows how much in residual royalties from his multiple bestselling books (including The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court (affiliate link), which I recommend to you if you haven’t already read it). Why not avoid the bad publicity and pay Greenfield what she seeks?
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As for Toobin’s take on the case, his lawyer, the high-powered Patricia Ann Grant of Grant & Appelbaum, commented to the Times:
“The law assumes that both parents will contribute to the financial support of the child. Mr. Toobin is providing liberal financial support. Ms. Greenfield’s demands are unreasonable and do not comport with the law.”
As to continuing news media coverage of the matter, Mr. Toobin “feels that it’s not in Rory’s interest for this matter to be publicized,” Ms. Grant wrote [in an email]. “He wishes Ms. Greenfield felt the same way.”
That’s a fair point too. One could certainly argue — and, based on the NYT reader comments, some people appear to think — that it’s somehow inappropriate or exploitative for Casey Greenfield to be using her personal story to help build her legal practice. That’s not my personal view — in a highly competitive legal market, you need to press every advantage — but I can see how some might think that.
And Casey Greenfield, boasting brains and beauty, does have many advantages to press. Her former boss at Gibson Dunn — legendary litigator Orin Snyder, who recently smacked down shady Facebook claimant Paul Ceglia — characterizes Greenfield as “a natural-born litigator… smart, savvy and tough.” The Times amusingly describes her as “strategically toned in all the right places.”
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Best of luck to Casey Greenfield and her colleagues at Greenfield Labby. Growing a new law firm can be difficult, but with her fearsome combination of a strategic mind and equally strategic toning, this luscious litigatrix should be up for the challenge.
P.S. Some folks, including commenters on the Times article, seem to view coverage of the Greenfield / Toobin affair as unseemly. I have several responses. First, this complaint seems a bit old-school to me; for better or worse, we live in an age where what used to be considered “private” is increasingly public. Second, both Greenfield and Toobin are public figures (Toobin in a general-purpose way, and Greenfield because she has invited the spotlight). Third, specifically with respect to ATL’s coverage, you should know that we have exercised great restraint in covering this matter. We have withheld certain materials (e.g., steamy Gchat messages during the affair) that we deem to be purely prurient and without news value. So please don’t accuse us of not exercising news judgment or editorial discretion; you should see the kinds of tips we receive and don’t print in these pages, about this story and many others.
Casey Greenfield v. the World [New York Times]
Earlier: Prior ATL coverage of Casey Greenfield
Prior ATL coverage of Jeffrey Toobin
Size Matters: From Tragedy to Triumph Isn’t Just a Theme in Lifetime Movies (Just Ask Casey Greenfield)
The Jeffrey Toobin / Casey Greenfield Drama Rolls On
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