DLA Piper Says Sex-Assault Probe Reveals Accuser's ‘Flirtation'

(Bloomberg) -- DLA Piper, the law firm embroiled in a fight over a sexual-assault claim against a former partner, officially stepped into the dispute, saying the lawyer who filed the complaint orchestrated a “flirtation” to advance her career.

Less than three weeks after DLA said it decided to “part ways” with partner Louis Lehot after his colleague Vanina Guerrero accused the star Silicon Valley lawyer of sexually assaulting her, the firm on Tuesday filed its response to her claims after conducting what it called an “impartial investigation” of the matter.

“Ms. Guerrero was a willing participant in a lengthy emotional flirtation with Mr. Lehot that she orchestrated to advance her career,” DLA Piper said in a letter to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, citing Guerrero’s emails.

The filing, obtained by Bloomberg News, recites what DLA describes as a “confessional email” Guerrero wrote to herself in a “stream-of-consciousness” style on Nov. 10, 2018.

Louis:
This man will help me
Control him: friendship w/o anything
It allows his energy to rise
Yes he is in love..
Cannelize the energy – get me to where I need professionally
Abundance – Libertad
Don’t open up to him.
Leverage it for me….
(((Make me universal))))

"According to Ms. Guerrero’s charge, at the time she crafted this email, Mr. Lehot already had sexually assaulted her three times," according to the law firm’s filing.

Guererro’s lawyer, Jeanne M. Christensen, said Tuesday in an email: “DLA Piper, a global law firm, has managed to reach a new low in the how to smear women that speak out about sexual assault playbook -- a low that even Harvey Weinstein, Bill O’Reilly and Matt Lauer did not reach.”

Guerrero disclosed her complaint with the EEOC this month while also publicizing a letter to her bosses seeking permission to go to court instead of having to press her case in the secretive arbitration system. Lehot has denied claims that he assaulted or harassed Guerrero.

"As I said a week ago, it’s good to see the truth coming out,” Lehot said Tuesday in an emailed statement.

Guerrero accused Lehot of sexually assaulting her in Shanghai, Brazil, Chicago and Palo Alto. Lehot shared dozens of emails to counter Guerrero’s claims by showing that the two had a long and warm connection. None of the correspondence Lehot released directly addresses the alleged assaults.

DLA Piper previously said only that it hadn’t substantiated Guerrero’s claims, and that she wasn’t cooperating with its inquiry. In its filing with the EEOC, the law firm wades decisively deeper into the conflict, relying heavily on Guerrero’s cryptic email. The firm said about two weeks ago that it was putting Guerrero on paid leave while it investigates “serious issues” with her conduct that it called unrelated to her accusations against Lehot.

--With assistance from Max Abelson.

To contact the reporter on this story: Joel Rosenblatt in San Francisco at jrosenblatt@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: David Glovin at dglovin@bloomberg.net, Peter Blumberg, Heather Smith

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