CAA has lost its bid to dismiss a lawsuit from Julia Ormond faulting the agency for failing to warn her about Harvey’s Weinstein’s history of sexual misconduct before she took a meeting with the former movie mogul that led to her assault.
Ormond last year filed a wide-reaching lawsuit accusing her ex-agency, Miramax and Disney of turning a blind eye to Weinstein’s crimes. After she was assaulted, she said her agents at the time, who were allegedly told by another client that Weinstein proposed sex in exchange for career opportunities, discouraged her from reporting the incident to law enforcement.
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In an order rejecting dismissal of the case, New York judge Suzanne Adams found on Monday that the allegations “suggest that CAA knew or had reason to know of a potential assault by Weinstein” that could constitute a breach of agency’s fiduciary duties to Ormond, who rose to prominence in the 90s after starring in Legends of the Fall, First Knight and Sabrina.
Claims were also allowed to proceed against Disney, Miramax and Weinstein.
In a statement, a CAA spokesperson said the agency “did not learn of Weinstein’s sexually assaultive behavior until it became public knowledge decades later.” As a result, “the claim that CAA should have warned Ms. Ormond about Weinstein’s criminal conduct in December 1995 defies logic,” the company added.
Ormond’s lawsuit pointed to her ex-agents Bryan Lourd and Kevin Huvane encouraging her to take a meeting with Weinstein that led to her being assaulted and not to report the incident to law enforcement. She also blamed Disney executives Jeffrey Katzenberg and Michael Eisner for negligently shifting responsibility on supervising Weinstein, with the aim of overlooking the misconduct to continue profiting off of the company’s dealing with Miramax. None of the individuals were named in the lawsuit as defendants.
With respect to CAA’s prior knowledge of Weinstein’s propensity for sexual assault, the court found that the complaint sufficiently alleged that the agency “failed to protect” Ormond. It pointed to representatives for CAA choosing not to warn her of his reputation while they were negotiating her first-look deal with Miramax.
In 1995, the agency helped arrange a meeting between Ormond and Weinstein to discuss funding for a title she was developing. He later lured her back to his apartment, where he forced her to perform oral sex on him, according to the complaint.
After Ormond recounted the assault to Lourd and Huvane, they allegedly told her “she may not be believed and that she “risked further angering Weinstein” if she went to the police because it was his “perception of the event — not Ormond’s actual lack of consent — that legally mattered,” the lawsuit said.
Moving for dismissal of the case, Disney said that it isn’t responsible for Weinstein’s crimes because it wasn’t his employer. Adams rejected the argument since Weinstein reported directly to Eisner, who delegated oversight of the Miramax founder to other Disney executives, including Katzenberg.
Disney purchased Miramax in 1993, prior to Weinstein’s assault of Ormond.
The lawsuit brought claims for sexual battery against Weinstein and negligent supervision against Miramax and Disney. She also accused CAA of negligence and breach of fiduciary duty. The complaint was filed under New York’s Adult Survivors Act, which temporarily lifted time constraints on claims involving sex offenses for a one year period.
