On Tuesday, the judge abandoned Harvey Weinstein’s lawsuit against Irwin Reiter, the accountant at Weinstein, who blew whis off him in 2017.
Weinstein sued his brother Bob and former COO David Glasser earlier this year, rebuking them for “financial betrayal” that helped the company go down.
Judge Joel M. Cohen dismisses the case against the writer and discovers that Weinstein is using it to punish anyone who opposed him.
The writer was an important source for New York Times reporters Jody Cantor and Megan Twohay, who revealed Weinstein’s sexual harassment complaints and patterns of settlement in October 2017.
As Weinstein Co. was falling apart in the wake of these revelations, Len Blavatnik’s AI International Holdings sued Weinstein to seek to recover a $45 million personal guarantee.
The case was dormant for years as Weinstein’s company went bankrupt and he was sent to prison, and AI International agreed to drop the lawsuit, concluded that he would not see the money in the end.
However, after signing the notice of fire in 2023, Weinstein’s lawyer was experiencing a change in his heart and asked AI International Holdings not to file it. Instead, they decided to use the case to submit a counter suit. They called for the default responsibility to be shifted from Harvey Weinstein to Bob Weinstein and two other executives. He claimed that Bob Weinstein and Glasser took an inappropriate bonus, weakening the company’s financial position, and that the writer made it happen.
Weinstein dropped the lawsuit against the brothers in July, with Glasser and Writer pursuing a motion to dismiss.
Given the dismissal of the underlying lawsuit, the judge ruled that Weinstein had no position to file a countersuit, the allegation had passed the law of restrictions, and the writer’s alleged conduct was not fraudulent. Additionally, Cohen concluded that Weinstein used the mo death lawsuit “as a tactical means to target writers.”
Weinstein denied the inappropriate motive, but the judge did not buy it.
“Weinstein claims that his face fraud claims have nothing to do with repeated issues, though
The court may look beyond the complaints and go beyond the “big picture,” Cohen wrote.
The judge also suggested in a footnote that the true purpose of the case was not to seek a recovery of AI international possession, but to seek a recovery “Weinstein is revenge against the writers.”
Weinstein’s lawyer, Imran Ansari, declined to comment.
Writer’s lawyer Hugh Baran argued that the outcome was a victory for both writers and whistleblowers.
“Harvey Weinstein and other abusers need to be aware that courts will not be used as weapons to expose sexual abuse or torture those suffering from sexual abuse,” Baran said. “This sends a really clear message that if you speak up and face this type of retaliation, the court will protect you.”
The judge also ruled that the writer is entitled to repay his attorney’s fees.
Glasser’s motion for rejection is pending. Weinstein was convicted of sexual assault at his third trial in June, and is being held on Rikers Island while he awaits his sentence.
