Have you been subjected to a hostile work environment at your job in Brooklyn, NY?
At Bloom Fudali, we are trial-tested hostile work environment lawyers committed to thorough preparation in every matter.
If you are being harassed at work in Brooklyn because of your sex, race, religion, sexual orientation, disability, or another protected characteristic, you may have a legal claim against your employer. Our Brooklyn, NY hostile work environment lawyer can review the conduct, preserve the evidence, and pursue compensation for lost wages and emotional distress.
Bloom Fudali has represented victims of harassment and discrimination since 2010. Our trial attorneys have won jury verdicts against wealthy and well-connected defendants. Schedule a free, confidential consultation to discuss your options.
Hostile Work Environment Lawyer Brooklyn, NY
A hostile work environment exists when unwelcome conduct connected to a protected characteristic, such as sex, race, religion, disability, age, or sexual orientation, makes the workplace intimidating or offensive. The EEOC lists slurs, insults, and ridicule, along with threats, offensive images, and physical assault, among the forms harassment takes. The harasser can be a manager, a coworker, or someone outside the company. The conduct does not have to cost you your job to be unlawful.
In fiscal year 2025, the NYC Commission on Human Rights secured more than $17.4 million in damages and penalties and resolved 374 filed discrimination cases. Those figures cover only cases filed with the agency. Many employees never report harassment, particularly subtle forms of harassment such as exclusion, repeated comments, or hostile messages.
Types of Hostile Work Environment Cases We Handle in Brooklyn
Our Brooklyn hostile work environment attorneys represent employees harassed because of a protected characteristic and employees harassed after they reported misconduct. In each case, we identify the conduct, the people responsible, and what the employer did after learning of it.
- Workplace sexual harassment. Unwanted advances, sexual jokes, comments about a person’s body, and explicit messages are the conduct we see most often. We collect texts, emails, and witness accounts and place each incident in date order.
- Quid pro quo demands and sexual favoritism. Some supervisors tie raises, schedules, or continued employment to sexual compliance. Others give a favored employee benefits in a way that creates a sexualized workplace for everyone else. Both patterns can support a claim.
- Workplace sexual assault. Physical assault by a supervisor, coworker, or client can support claims against both the individual and the employer. We investigate what the employer knew before the assault and what it did afterward.
- Harassment based on sexual orientation or gender identity. We have resolved claims against corporations for deadnaming and mocking transgender employees. Many of these cases involve both harassment and discrimination, which are separate claims.
- Racial and national origin harassment. Slurs, racist imagery, and remarks about an employee’s accent or heritage are frequent sources of these claims. We document who said what, who heard it, and whether management responded.
- Religious harassment. Ridicule of religious practice, pressure to abandon religious dress, and repeated comments about a person’s faith fall within this category.
- Harassment tied to pregnancy, disability, or age. Comments questioning a pregnant employee’s commitment, mockery of a disability, and constant jokes about an older worker’s age can create a hostile environment. We look closely at timing, especially when the conduct began after a disclosure or an accommodation request.
- Retaliatory harassment. Employees who report misconduct sometimes face sudden scrutiny, exclusion, or reassignment. We compare the timing of those changes to the date of the complaint.
Why Choose Bloom Fudali as My Hostile Work Environment Lawyer in Brooklyn, NY?
Trial Experience Directed From Our New York City Office
Arick Fudali leads our work from our office in New York, NY. As a hostile work environment attorney in Brooklyn, he has been admitted to practice in New York since 2015. He began his career as a prosecutor in Broward County, Florida, and won every trial he tried there as lead counsel. Since joining the firm in 2018, he has served as co-lead trial counsel with Lisa Bloom in jury trials that ended in multi-million-dollar verdicts. Mr. Fudali also appears regularly on CNN and MSNOW.
Ms. Bloom founded the firm in 2010 and has practiced law since the early 1990s. She earned her law degree at Yale Law School. She has been selected to Super Lawyers every year since 2015.
Results in Harassment Cases
Bloom Fudali has recovered millions of dollars for clients through verdicts and settlements. Our harassment results include:
- $11 million jury verdict for an employee sexually harassed and retaliated against by an entertainment executive and his companies
- $8.4 million unanimous jury verdict on every claim in a sexual harassment and sexual assault case
- $1.5 million settlement for a police detective harassed by a fellow officer
- $850,000 for a municipal employee harassed by an elected official
We handle hostile work environment cases on contingency. Our fee is a percentage of what we recover for you.
What Is Important to Understand About a Hostile Work Environment Case?
Damages, Liability, and Compensation for Hostile Work Environment Cases
Compensation in a harassment case can cover financial losses and emotional harm. Depending on the claims and the employer, recoverable damages may include:
- Back pay: Wages and benefits lost because of the harassment, including after a forced resignation
- Front pay: Future earnings when returning to the job is not realistic
- Emotional distress damages: Anxiety, humiliation, sleep loss, and the cost of counseling
- Punitive damages: An additional award meant to punish especially malicious or reckless conduct
- Attorney’s fees and costs: Legal costs the employer may be ordered to pay
Liability depends on who the harasser was and what the employer knew. Under Title VII, federal damages caps limit combined compensatory and punitive damages to between $50,000 and $300,000, depending on the employer’s size. Claims under New York State and New York City law are not subject to those federal limits. Our Brooklyn hostile work environment lawyers calculate each category using your pay records, therapy bills, and the employer’s size.
Settlements often include confidentiality terms. Review any nondisclosure agreement with your attorney before you sign it.
What Are Important Aspects of a Hostile Work Environment Case?
Most hostile work environment cases depend on three issues.
The first is whether the conduct connects to a protected characteristic. A difficult boss who mistreats everyone may be unpleasant without acting unlawfully. A supervisor who targets only women, or only employees of one race, presents a different case.
The second is the record. Dated notes, saved messages, and the names of people who saw or heard the conduct are stronger evidence than memory alone.
The third is how the employer responded. A complaint to human resources that went uninvestigated is often central evidence. So is a transfer that moved the employee who complained instead of the harasser.
What Is the Hostile Work Environment Case Timeline?
Each type of claim has its own filing deadline. Our Brooklyn, NY hostile work environment lawyers confirm those deadlines at the first meeting. In New York, a charge with the EEOC must be filed within 300 days of the last incident of harassment. Complaints with the state Division of Human Rights may be filed within three years for conduct on or after February 15, 2024. The NYC Human Rights Commission accepts complaints within one year, or three years for gender-based harassment. Lawsuits under state and city law may be filed in court within three years.
- Consultation: We review your records, the applicable deadlines, and what you want from the case.
- Investigation: We gather messages, personnel files, and witness accounts, and we decide with you whether to file an internal HR complaint first.
- Filing: We file with an agency or in state or federal court, depending on which forum suits your claims.
- Discovery: Both sides exchange records and take depositions under oath.
- Resolution: Many cases settle through mediation. Others proceed to trial.
What Should You Bring to Your Hostile Work Environment Consultation?
Bring whatever documents you have, even if they are incomplete. Messages saved on the day of an incident are stronger evidence than a summary written months later.
- A written log of incidents with dates, names, and what was said or done
- Texts, emails, chat messages, or photos involving the harasser
- Performance reviews, the employee handbook, and any complaint you submitted
- Names and contact information for coworkers who witnessed the conduct
- Any severance offer or release, since signing a release can end a claim
The first meeting with our Brooklyn hostile work environment lawyer covers what happened, when it happened, and what your employer did after learning of it. We will explain which deadlines apply and which claims the facts may support.
Reach Out to Bloom Fudali to Schedule a Consultation
Contact us to schedule a free, confidential consultation with our Brooklyn hostile work environment attorney. Bloom Fudali handles these cases on contingency. There are no attorney fees unless we recover compensation for you. Our firm responds to inquiries promptly. At the consultation, we will review your documents, explain the applicable deadlines, and outline your options.