Robert De Niro seemed on Wednesday as a lawyer for a lady who labored for him for over a decade urged a jury in closing arguments to award her tens of millions of {dollars} for emotional misery and reputational hurt as a result of the actor discriminated and retaliated in opposition to her.
Attorney Brent Hannafan argued on Graham Chase Robinson’s behalf in Manhattan federal courtroom after De Niro’s lawyer, Richard Schoenstein, informed jurors that Robinson was a disloyal worker who stole $85,000 value of airline miles and owes De Niro damages.
“This is a civil rights trial,” Hannafan mentioned. “Your verdict will have meaning when you return it, again, not just for Ms. Robinson, but for all civil rights litigants.”
He urged jurors to award Robinson “significant damages” of at the very least seven figures and “possibly up to eight figures,” a request constant together with her $12 million declare asserting gender discrimination and retaliation.
Schoenstein mentioned De Niro, 80, was the sufferer of a lady who triggered “drama and conflict” at his firm and lashed out with a lawsuit when he did not meet her calls for to proceed paying her $300,000 wage after she give up in April 2019 on the peak of a feud with De Niro’s girlfriend.
“This trial is the ultimate version of drama and conflict,” he mentioned.
Robinson, 41, labored for one in every of De Niro’s firms, Canal Productions, starting in 2008 as a private assistant for lower than $100,000 in wage. By 2019, De Niro had agreed to pay her $300,000 yearly and elevated her title, making her vice chairman of manufacturing and finance.
The actor testified final week that her duties largely remained the identical, although he gave her the enhance in title at her request.
De Niro has gained two Oscars over the previous 5 a long time in movies comparable to “Raging Bull” and “The Deer Hunter.” He’s within the Martin Scorsese movie “Killers of the Flower Moon” that is in theaters now.
De Niro sat relaxed in a chair between two of his attorneys throughout closing arguments. He declined to remark as he left the courthouse in a masks that protects in opposition to the coronavirus. It was the primary time he’d been in courtroom since he testified for 2 days early final week.
During his testimony, De Niro admitted that he had requested her to scratch his again and had used profanity, however he mentioned he by no means did something out of “disrespect or lewdness.”
He additionally mentioned he by no means yelled at her, solely to lean ahead within the witness chair quickly after and glare at her as he shouted: “Shame on you, Chase Robinson!”
When she testified, Robinson mentioned she discovered it “creepy” and “disgusting” when De Niro informed her that he appreciated the best way she scratched his again when she advised that he use a again scratching gadget as an alternative.
Robinson mentioned she give up after struggling an “emotion and mental breakdown” as she clashed along with his new girlfriend in 2019 over preparations for a townhouse that was going to be a house for the couple.
Tiffany Chen, De Niro’s girlfriend, informed De Niro in a collection of emails that she thought Robinson was having “imaginary intimacy” with him and was a “mean, insecure, territorial girl” who “thinks she’s your wife” and “wants to be the lady of the house.”
Questioned concerning the emails when she testified final week, Chen didn’t again down, saying, “She’s crazy.”
In his arguments, Schoenstein requested the jury to compensate De Niro for his authorized claims, which allege breach of loyalty and fiduciary obligation necessities.
He mentioned 5 million airline miles pocketed by Robinson had been value about $85,000 and that his consumer simply needs “stuff back.”
“Use your common sense,” Schoenstein informed jurors. “Nobody’s right here to spoil the plaintiff.”
“We’re not looking for you to punish her,” he later added.
Jurors had been anticipated to start deliberations on Thursday.
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