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Judge denies motions to dismiss case by actress who claims CAA, Disney enabled assault by Harvey Weinstein

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Judge denies motions to dismiss case by actress who claims CAA, Disney enabled assault by Harvey Weinstein

As a seasoned movie buff with decades of immersion into the silver screen world, I find myself deeply saddened and outraged by the ongoing saga surrounding Harvey Weinstein and his alleged victims, including Julia Ormond. The latest development in this heart-wrenching tale – the denial of motions to dismiss Ormond’s lawsuit against Weinstein, CAA, Walt Disney Co., and Miramax – is a testament to the resilience and courage of survivors everywhere.

On Monday, a judge at the Supreme Court of New York declined requests from talent agency CAA, The Walt Disney Company, and Miramax to discard actress Julia Ormond’s lawsuit alleging sexual battery by Harvey Weinstein.

Last October, a lawsuit was submitted, which accused the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) of negligence and violating their duty of trust, also implicating both The Walt Disney Company and Miramax for neglectful oversight and employment.

The court stated in its decision that the lawsuit adequately claims that CAA did not safeguard the plaintiff from Weinstein. This was due to their alleged failure to inform her of Weinstein’s questionable reputation, while simultaneously negotiating a production company agreement between the plaintiff and Miramax. Furthermore, they later organized a dinner meeting between the plaintiff and Weinstein.

Disney owned Miramax at the time of the alleged assault.

“Ormond’s lawyers, Meredith A. Firetog and Kevin Mintzer, expressed their satisfaction with the court’s ruling that dismisses attempts by CAA, Disney, and Miramax to avoid accountability for not shielding Julia Ormond from Harvey Weinstein’s misconduct. The case will move forward to the discovery phase, allowing us to unveil the facts about how these influential entertainment companies allowed Weinstein’s behavior,” stated in a release to The Times.

Representatives for CAA and Disney were not immediately available for comment.

In December 1995, Ormond claimed that she was sexually assaulted by the disgraced film producer, during a conversation about a potential project, following a business dinner in New York City. The alleged incident took place after the remake of “Sabrina” and “Legends of the Fall,” where Ormond had starred.

Additionally, she claimed that upon sharing her concerns with her representatives Bryan Lourd and Kevin Huvane, who are now co-chairmen at CAA, they chose not to offer assistance and even warned her against vocalizing her issues instead.

In my perspective as a movie reviewer, while Lourd and Huvane weren’t officially listed as defendants in the lawsuit, they were indeed mentioned frequently within the complaint itself.

According to the lawsuit, individuals from CAA who managed Ormond were aware of Weinstein’s actions. Similarly, Weinstein’s employers at Miramax and Disney also knew about his misconduct. Shockingly, not one of these prominent companies cautioned Ormond that Weinstein had a history of assaulting women because he was considered too influential, too powerful, and generated too much revenue for them.

The complaint states that Weinstein persistently wanted to talk about a project in the Manhattan apartment that Miramax had given to the English actor under her two-year, first-look contract with the company.

Upon arriving, Ormond, who was so drunk she couldn’t even insert her keys into the door, asserted that Weinstein disrobed against her objections. He compelled her to give him a massage, mounted her, masturbated, and subsequently made her perform oral sex on him.

After some time had passed since the reported incident, I found myself in Copenhagen, engrossed in my film project. Little did I know that my path was about to cross with Weinstein’s plans, as he intended to pay me a visit.

According to the lawsuit, she urgently contacted her representatives at CAA, Lourd and Huvane, asking them to stop Weinstein from traveling to Copenhagen. However, they chose not to take action, as stated in the lawsuit.

Ormond chose to bring her lawsuit forward utilizing the Adult Survivors Act, enacted in New York during 2022. This legislation created a one-year “review period” for individuals who have experienced sexual assault as adults, irrespective of when the incident occurred.

In response to the lawsuit, Imran H. Ansari, Weinstein’s attorney, unequivocally denies the accusations made by Julia Ormond and is ready to vigorously defend his position.

At the time of the filing, CAA called the claims baseless.

“Regarding the accusations of sexual misconduct and abuse made by Ms. Ormond, our organization treats them with utmost seriousness and empathy. Yet, the allegations she has brought forth against us are entirely unfounded.”

The agency said that Ormond’s legal counsel approached them in March about the allegations. The Century City-based agency then hired attorney Loretta Lynch and her law firm, Paul, Weiss. The firm’s review “found nothing to support Ms. Ormond’s claims against CAA.”

Ormond’s lawyers proposed that CAA should pay 15 million dollars if Ormond would refrain from making any public accusations against the agency, a proposal which CAA declined, they stated instead.

At the Bloomberg Screentime conference last year, Lourd said: “We were falsely accused of something that we did not do and we are going to address those accusations in court in a proper forum.”

In April, a New York appeals court reversed the rape conviction of Harvey Weinstein in a different trial, claiming that a lower court judge made an error by permitting three women to speak at the trial about allegations against Weinstein, even though no charges were brought against him regarding these specific accusations.

Recently, Governor Gavin Newsom issued a warrant for Harvey Weinstein’s extradition from his current detention in New York. This is so that Weinstein can be moved to California, the location of his previous conviction related to rape charges.

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2024-08-20 02:31

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