Weinstein Victims at Odds Over $18.8M Settlement

Lawyer for one group says agreement is 'a complete sellout'
By Arden Dier,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 1, 2020 8:11 AM CDT
Weinstein Victims at Odds Over $18.8M Settlement
In this Feb. 24, 2020 file photo, Harvey Weinstein arrives at a Manhattan courthouse as jury deliberations continue in his rape trial in New York.   (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)

Nine women who accused the Weinstein Company of a hostile work environment, in which they were forced to facilitate Harvey Weinstein's sexual conquests, have reached a settlement of $18.8 million. A victims' compensation fund is to be distributed among "women who experienced a hostile work environment, sexual harassment, and gender-based discrimination while working at the Weinstein Company, as well as sexual abuse by Harvey Weinstein," the New York Attorney General's office said Tuesday, per CNN. The initial lawsuit naming TWC, Weinstein, and his brother, Robert, described "one group of female employees whose primary job it was to accompany HW to events and to facilitate HW's sexual conquests." One employee was reportedly flown from London to New York "to teach HW’s assistants how to dress and smell more attractive to HW."

Attorney General Letitia James said the settlement—which would permit accusers to claim $7,500 to $750,000 and release them from any confidentiality agreements—was "a win for every woman who has experienced sexual harassment, discrimination, intimidation, or retaliation by her employer," per CNN. But that's not how some of Weinstein's alleged victims see it. Lawyers representing several of those women said the settlement—which still needs approval from the US District Court in New York City, per NBC News—is "a complete sellout of the Weinstein survivors," as it doesn't require Weinstein to accept responsibility or provide any money himself, per CBS News. "We will be vigorously objecting in court," the lawyers said. (More Harvey Weinstein stories.)

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