Another Woman Says She Was ‘Afraid’ of Former DLA Piper Lawyer

(Bloomberg) -- Weeks after Louis Lehot was accused of sexual assault, another woman has told the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission that the former DLA Piper partner bullied her, and that the firm retaliated against her when she complained.

The human resources manager said she was fired this year after raising concerns about Lehot’s behavior with another senior partner. In a letter to the commission from her lawyer, the woman said the dismissal came weeks after she told Sang Kim, one of the top lawyers at the firm, that she was “physically afraid” to be alone with Lehot. She also said other women came to her saying they feared him.

A copy of the letter provided by the woman’s attorney, Jeanne Christensen, doesn’t identify her. Christensen also represents Vanina Guerrero, who earlier this month accused Lehot of assault, which he denies.

“Consistent with Ms. Christensen’s previous communications with the media, her most recent letter is filled with inaccuracies and falsehoods, which will be demonstrated through the proper channels at EEOC,” said Josh Epstein, a spokesman for DLA Piper. “Christensen plainly seeks to distract attention and interfere with the ongoing investigation regarding her client.”

A spokesperson for Lehot didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Soon after Guerrero’s complaint, DLA Piper said it was parting ways with Lehot. It then put Guerrero on paid leave over what it said is a separate harassment claim against her, which is still being investigated. On Monday, Lehot released emails between them to counter her allegations against him.

To contact the reporters on this story: Rebecca Greenfield in New York at rgreenfield@bloomberg.net;Max Abelson in New York at mabelson@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Janet Paskin at jpaskin@bloomberg.net, ;Michael J. Moore at mmoore55@bloomberg.net, David Scheer, Dan Reichl

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