Robert De Niro's Company Ordered to Pay Ex-Assistant Hefty Sum in Lawsuit Verdict
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The discrimination lawsuit filed by Robert De Niro's former assistant against his production company Canal has officially reached a verdict–with a huge price tag attached.
On Thursday, Nov. 9, a civil jury in New York City found Canal guilty of both gender discrimination and retaliation and awarded his ex-assistant, Graham Chase Robinson, $1.264 million in damages on both counts.
While De Niro's company was found liable for gender discrimination and retaliation, the 80-year-old actor was not.
Parade has reached out to De Niro's reps for comment.
Robinson was also exonerated and not found guilty regarding the claims against her, which included accusations that she misused funds from the actor’s company and stole office property as well as millions of frequent-flier miles during her 11-year tenure with the actor's company, which came to an end in 2019 after she quit.
“We are delighted that the jury saw what we saw and returned a verdict in Chase Robinson’s favor against Robert De Niro’s company, Canal Productions," said Robinson's lawyer, David Sanford. "Not only did Ms. Robinson win her case against Canal but the jury completely vindicated Ms. Robinson by finding De Niro’s claims against her to be without merit.”
The verdict comes after an eight-day trial in a federal courtroom, with witnesses hearing claims from both sides. Last week, De Niro's girlfriend Tiffany Chen came to the actor's defense, suggesting that Robinson offered and wasn't "forced" to do tasks outside of her job description. However, Robinson's lawyer told Parade that Chen's testimony wasn't as solid as she thought, explaining, "It was clear from Tiffany Chen’s testimony that Chen felt threatened by Chase Robinson’s relationship with Robert De Niro, was concerned that the relationship was impacting her private home life with De Niro, and believed that Chase Robinson wanted to be 'the lady of the house' and was striving to be De Niro’s wife."
Sanford continued: "Ms. Chen made it clear to De Niro that keeping Ms. Robinson would create serious problems in their relationship. Ultimately, Ms. Chen orchestrated matters in ways that allowed her to get what she wanted: Chase Robinson departed after eleven years of employment with Robert De Niro."
Next: Robert De Niro, 80, Confesses That Girlfriend Tiffany Chen 'Does the Work' With Their Newborn
