Late last year, Biglaw firm Baker McKenzie filed a defamation lawsuit against a former tax associate, Brooke Radford, alleging Radford made repeated allegations on social media and Reddit — some 100+ of them —–falsely accusing a partner of sexually assaulting her and accusing the firm of covering it up. According to that complaint, Radford said she was assaulted by Maurice Bellan (also a plaintiff in the lawsuit) and was terminated by the firm when she turned down the partner’s advances.
According to the amended complaint, Radford had a relationship with Bellan’s son, Maurice “Reece” Alexander Bellan. Reece ended the two-year relationship shortly before Radford was fired from the firm — Baker McKenzie alleges Radford was fired for misusing the firm credit card, among other issues — and, according to the complaint, that confluence of events led Radford to target Bellan Sr. with her false accusations.
But litigation has a way of boomeranging, and Radford has now responded with a lawsuit of her own.
This latest complaint, available below, has a decidedly different spin. Radford alleges Bellan Sr. engaged in a pattern of sexually inappropriate conduct, including pulling her onto him on a couch and forcefully hugging her on another occasion. She also describes an incident in which Bellan Sr. allegedly left his hotel room door open so colleagues could find him naked on the bed, not exactly the kind of team-building exercise HR recommends.
Radford, representing herself in both actions, goes on to allege Bellan Sr. posted her home address online, stalked her, and sent people to her residence and places she frequented.
Radford’s complaint also alleges Baker McKenzie “knew of this sexually harassing conduct and failed to take prompt, effective, or reasonable steps to stop it, prevent it from reoccurring, or protect” her. She claims Bellan Sr. made unwanted sexual advances, chastised her after she told him she and his son “were not romantically compatible,” and that her refusal ultimately cost her her job.
Baker McKenzie has not commented on the new lawsuit, but previously said there is”no merit to Ms. Radford’s allegations.” A spokesperson continued, “We’ve attempted to pursue a dialogue to try to address her purported concerns, but she has not engaged with these efforts. The firm takes all allegations of harassment very seriously and is committed to providing a safe and inclusive working environment for all of our people.”
Radford reiterated a prior statement when asked for comment, “My family and I are concerned about our safety and we are disgusted by how far Baker McKenzie is willing to stoop to protect a predator.”
These very different stories and dueling lawsuits ensure one thing: this fight isn’t staying quiet.
Biglaw Lawsuit Against Former Associate Is Actually Messy As Hell
Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter @Kathryn1 or Mastodon @Kathryn1@mastodon.social.
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