Henry Har, formerly a public finance attorney with the Los Angeles office of Nixon Peabody, has sued his former firm for sexual and racial discrimination.
Har, now an associate with Holland & Knight in San Francisco, alleges he was wrongly terminated from Nixon Peabody in 2008 because of his gender, and because he is Asian-American.
The 18-page complaint filed in Los Angeles Superior Court charges that Har was subjected to a partner’s comments about oral sex, as well as homophobic statements from workers at Nixon Peabody.
Har seeks damages for discrimination, breach of an implied covenant, wrongful discharge, misrepresentation and intentional infliction of emotion distress.
From Nixon Peabody’s written statement:
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 website. Because if you have a diversity page on your website, discrimination becomes impossible.
Nixon Peabody terminated Har in February 2008, over an alleged assault against another employee at a company function. Har denies the assault took place.
Har, a graduate of the New York University School of Law, worked for Nixon Peabody in the San Francisco and Los Angeles offices. He alleges that the Los Angeles office had a “drastically different working environment” from San Francisco, and that attorneys in the office “demonstrated inappropriate and offense behavior towards ethnic minorities, women and homosexuals.”
Har contends that male Asian-American attorneys at the firm have lower retention and employment rates, and that the firm treats those attorneys unfairly.
Via NLJ.