A former employee of Howard Stern has detailed the disc jockey’s “questionable business operations” and the “incredible pressure” of the job in a new lawsuit.
Leslie Kuhn, a former executive assistant who managed Howard and his wife Beth Stern’s home in the Hamptons for two years, has accused the couple of creating a hostile work environment, according to court documents obtained by Page Six.
According to the filing, Kuhn said her responsibilities include managing the staff at the Hamptons mansion, supervising household chores, and helping run Beth’s “large-scale in-home cat rescue and fostering operation.”
She was said to have experienced “immense pressure on families created by the irresponsible and unsustainable animal rescue and adoption efforts taking place on the ground.”
Kuhn also allegedly witnessed “substantial disruption” and “questionable business operations and accounting practices.”
Her attorney, John J. Leonard, told Page Six exclusively on Tuesday that Coon is a “very strong person.”
“I don’t want to say she’s doing well, but she’s definitely doing well,” the Hampton Bays-based attorney said, adding, “I understand that this is the path you take when you’re trying to speak truth to power and assert your rights against someone who is exceptionally more powerful than you.”
As Page Six reported on Monday, Mr. Howard and Mr. Beth allegedly asked Mr. Kuhn to sign a non-disclosure agreement barring him from discussing the Stern family’s private life.
The agreement forbids Mr. Kuhn from disclosing Howard and Beth’s “daily activities and personal habits,” even their “food preferences, sleeping habits (and) hobbies,” according to the complaint.
She also cannot discuss her use of consumer products, her choice of restaurants, hotels and other establishments, her entertainment preferences, her political affiliations and “any other matters affecting or relating to the Company and its business, and the personal and business affairs of the Company,” according to the complaint.
Their travel arrangements, as well as the location and contents of their homes and property, were also prohibited.
Kuhn claimed that he received a letter from Howard’s production company in December stating that his salary would increase to $265,000 in 2026 and that he would receive an $80,000 bonus. Kuhn was fired by February 2026.
In addition to Kuhn’s claim that the Sterns fostered a hostile work environment, Kuhn also claimed that he never signed a non-disclosure agreement with his signature.
Kuhn is asking the court to throw out the NDA so he can talk freely about hiring and firing.
“Such a contractual relationship places Mr. Kuhn (a mere at-will employee with significantly less influence and resources than the Stern family and its affiliates and associates) at a clear personal, professional, and public disadvantage,” the filing states.
In an interview with Page Six, Kuhn’s lawyer claimed that Kuhn was “completely silenced.”
“We do not believe this is an equitable power differential, especially given the fact that as an employee she is clearly at a disadvantage in terms of influence and resources,” he said.
Representatives for Howard and Beth did not immediately respond to Page Six’s requests for comment.
