Robert De Niro’s company has been directed by a jury in Manhattan to compensate his former assistant $1.2 million. The jury found the firm guilty of gender discrimination and retaliation, thereby ending a highly publicized legal dispute where De Niro was accused of subjecting his aide to sexist conduct as an intolerable employer.
After about five hours of deliberation on Thursday, November 9, and a two-week trial, jurors in a federal court in Manhattan reached a verdict. De Niro, who is an 80-year-old Oscar winner, provided impactful testimony to counter allegations made by his former assistant, Graham Chase Robinson, of his unpleasant demeanor as a boss.
While De Niro was not held personally liable, Canal Productions, his company, has been ordered by the jury to pay Robinson damages of $632,142 for each claim.
Richard Schoenstein, De Niro’s attorney, noted after the verdict was read, “Undoubtedly, they arrived at the correct conclusion regarding Mr. De Niro.”
The court buzzed with De Niro’s testimony on Tuesday, October 31, as he faced his former assistant’s gender discrimination accusations.
The legal confrontation between De Niro and Robinson, who climbed the ranks from De Niro’s executive assistant to vice president at Canal Productions, generated considerable media buzz, spotlighting claims of belittlement and improper work assignments.
Robinson’s lawsuit painted a picture of a work environment where she was referred to as an “office wife” by De Niro and tasked with personal chores, such as laundering his bed linens, which did not align with her professional role.
On the stand, De Niro conceded that he had criticized Robinson for failing to wake him for a vital meeting and conceded the use of derogatory terms when referring to her. The trial’s tension was palpable when De Niro, challenged about his conduct of allegedly urinating while on a call with Robinson, denounced her with an impassioned, “Shame on you, Chase Robinson!”
Robinson’s claims extended beyond demeaning tasks to serious charges of gender discrimination and harassment over the years. She also alleged that she was paid less than a male colleague in an equivalent position. In a counteraction, Canal Productions sued Robinson, accusing her of illicitly transferring more than $450,000 in airline miles from the company.
Robinson, who had been earning a yearly salary of $300,000 in her final position, resigned, alleging that her departure was due to a hostile work environment tantamount to sabotage. De Niro categorically denied all allegations, labeling them as “nonsense” and completely “absurd.” He also refuted the assertions that he demanded personal favors from Robinson or reached out to her inappropriately during personal family events.
The trial’s initiation in Manhattan marks the peak of a prolonged four-year legal battle, capturing the public and media’s interest for its intense allegations and the stature of the involved parties.
