Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Weinstein sues his company for files
Movie mogul wants to use documents to fight sexual harassment allegations.
Harvey Weinstein on Thursday sued his namesake company for documents, including emails and his personnel file, that he says can be used to defend himself and the studio he co-founded.
Weinstein Co.’s board fired the movie mogul Oct. 8 after an article in The New York Times exposed decades of sexual harassment allegations against him.
In a complaint filed in Delaware, Weinstein’s attorneys said having access to the documents will allow him to defend himself against allegations and lawsuits from alleged victims.
Weinstein is asking a judge to expedite a ruling on his case.
The New York attorney general’s office has opened a civil rights investigation into the company, and one actress has sued the studio for negligence, claiming executives knew about Weinstein's conduct.
Weinstein owns 23 percent of the New York-based film and television company, which is looking for a buyer as it struggles financially.
“Mr.Weinstein believes that his email account — which is the primary, if not only, account he used during the term of his employment by the Company — will contain information exonerating him, and therefore the Company, from claims that may be asserted against him or the Company,” the attorneys said.
More than 50 women have accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct, including harassment and rape. Weinstein, 65, has denied all allegations.
The lawsuit came hours after actress Ashley Judd described on “Good Morning America” how she went to Weinstein’s hotel suite two decades ago for a business meeting, only to reject his sexual advances, which she escaped by making a deal.
She said she agreed to submit to a massage, but only “when I win an Oscar in one of your movies — OK?” She then left his suite. The allegations have exposed Weinstein and his company to potentially serious legal liability. The company’s board of directors has said it was unaware of the claims against Weinstein until news reports detailed his behavior.
Meanwhile, the Lexus luxury vehicle brand said it was ending its partnership with The Weinstein Co.