Are you looking for a sexual harassment lawyer in New York City?
At Bloom Fudali, we are trusted sexual harassment lawyers with over 30 years of experience.
If you’ve been harassed at work in New York City, our firm is here to help you. Many of our clients came to us after months of unwanted comments, touching, or pressure from a supervisor, and most of them were told to keep quiet. Our founder has represented harassment victims since the early 1990s, and we have tried these cases to verdict against some of the most powerful defendants in the country. Our New York City, NY sexual harassment lawyer represents employees only, never employers. Reach out for a free consultation.
Sexual Harassment Lawyer New York City
A sexual harassment lawyer represents workers who were subjected to unwelcome sexual conduct on the job and helps them recover compensation from the employer, the harasser, or both. That work includes gathering evidence, filing with the correct agency, negotiating with the company, and taking the case to trial when the offer isn’t fair. New York workers filed 940 sex-based discrimination charges with the EEOC in fiscal year 2022, and retaliation appeared in another 1,466 charges that same year.
Sexual harassment covers far more than a boss demanding sex in exchange for a promotion. Crude jokes, comments about your body, repeated requests for dates, explicit texts, and unwanted touching all qualify. The harasser can be a manager, a coworker, a client, or a vendor. And the conduct does not need to be aimed at you directly to poison your workplace.
Types of Sexual Harassment Cases We Handle in New York City
Our sexual harassment attorneys in New York City represent employees in every industry, from restaurants and hospitals to finance, fashion, and film. Some clients are still at the job. Others were already pushed out by the time they called us.
- Quid pro quo harassment. A supervisor conditions a raise, a shift, a role, or continued employment on sexual favors. We build these cases around the timeline: what was asked, what was refused, and what happened to your job afterward.
- Hostile work environment. Ongoing sexual comments, images, or advances that make it hard to do your work. We collect messages, witness accounts, and HR records to show a pattern rather than a single incident.
- Unwanted touching and sexual assault at work. Groping, forced kissing, or assault by someone with power over your paycheck. These claims often carry both employment and civil claims, and we pursue both.
- Sexual favoritism. A workplace where advancement depends on who is sleeping with the boss. Employees who refuse to participate and lose opportunities because of it may have a claim.
- Harassment in entertainment, fashion, and media. We have recovered money for models harassed by photographers, actors and assistants harassed by directors and producers, and musicians harassed by people who controlled their careers. Our firm handles high-profile matters with discretion.
- Harassment by clients, customers, and third parties. Employers are responsible for protecting you from people outside the company once they know about the conduct. We hold companies accountable when they look the other way to keep an account.
- Retaliation after a complaint. Demotions, schedule cuts, poor reviews, or exclusion that starts right after you report harassment. Retaliation is often the strongest part of the case because the timing speaks for itself.
- Wrongful termination. Being fired for rejecting advances or for filing a complaint. We pursue lost wages, future earnings, and emotional distress damages for employees let go under these circumstances.
Why Choose Bloom Fudali as my Sexual Harassment Lawyer in New York City, NY?
Trial Lawyers Who Have Beaten Powerful Defendants
Lisa Bloom graduated from Yale Law School in 1986, has practiced since the early 1990s, and opened the firm in 2010. She has been selected to Super Lawyers every year since 2015 and appears as a legal analyst on CNN, ABC, CBS, and NBC. In two jury trials against a wealthy television producer, our firm won close to $20 million for sexual harassment, sexual assault, and retaliation.
Arick Fudali lives in New York City and has been admitted here since 2015. A former prosecutor in Broward County, Florida, and a graduate of the University of Florida Levin College of Law, he has represented survivors of sexual abuse in civil litigation since 2011. Our employment lawyer in New York City, NY has the depth of experience that you should expect from your legal team.
Verdicts and Settlements in Harassment Cases
We have helped clients recover millions of dollars, and we take sexual harassment cases on contingency, so you pay nothing unless we win.
- $35.5 million recovered in a sexual harassment case
- $11 million sexual harassment verdict
- $8.4 million jury verdict for a sexual harassment victim against a billionaire
- $1.5 million recovered in a sexual harassment and civil rights matter
Understanding Sexual Harassment Cases
Damages, Liability, and Compensation for Sexual Harassment Cases
Three sets of law apply to most New York City workplaces: federal law, the New York State Human Rights Law, and the New York City Human Rights Law. The city and state laws are broader than the federal statute, and neither one caps the money damages a jury can award. Federal claims carry damage caps that depend on the size of the employer.
- Back pay. Wages, bonuses, and benefits you lost after being fired, demoted, or forced to quit.
- Front pay. Future earnings when returning to the job isn’t realistic.
- Emotional distress. Compensation for anxiety, humiliation, sleeplessness, and the toll on your relationships. The NYC Commission on Human Rights notes these damages are not capped under city law.
- Punitive damages. Money meant to punish an employer that ignored complaints or protected the harasser.
- Attorney fees and costs. Recoverable in successful claims, which is part of why we can take these cases on contingency.
Employers are generally liable for harassment by supervisors. For coworkers and outsiders, liability usually turns on whether the company knew about the conduct and failed to act.
What Are Important Aspects of a Sexual Harassment Case?
The cases that resolve well tend to share a few features, and most of them are within your control from the first week, long before you hire a sexual harassment attorney in NYC.
- Written records. Save texts, emails, and messages, and keep a dated log of what happened and who saw it. Clients who follow the steps we recommend early on give us far more to work with.
- An internal complaint. Reporting to HR in writing creates a record and puts the company on notice. It also sets up a retaliation claim if things get worse afterward.
- Confidentiality agreements. A nondisclosure agreement does not bar you from filing a complaint with a government agency. We review any document you signed before advising you.
- Overlapping claims. Harassment is frequently tied to broader employment discrimination, including sexual orientation discrimination or being targeted after coming out. We plead every claim the facts support.
- Avoiding common missteps. Quitting without a paper trail, deleting evidence, or venting publicly online can weaken a case. We walk through the mistakes we see most often at the first meeting.
What Is The Sexual Harassment Case Timeline?
Filing deadlines depend on which law you rely on, and they run from the most recent incident.
- 300 days to file a charge with the EEOC under federal law, according to the agency’s time limits for New York.
- Three years to file with the New York State Division of Human Rights or in state court under the state Human Rights Law.
- Three years to bring a gender-based harassment claim under the city Human Rights Law.
- Investigation and demand. We gather records, interview witnesses, and send a demand once we understand the full value of the claim. Many cases settle at this stage.
- Litigation. If the employer won’t pay a fair amount, we file in state or federal court. Discovery and depositions typically take a year or more, and we prepare every case as if it will reach a jury.
What to Bring to Your Sexual Harassment Consultation?
Bring whatever you have, even if it feels incomplete. Take what you have of the following to your consultation with us.
- Screenshots, emails, texts, or voicemails from the harasser or about the harassment
- Any written complaint you made and the company’s response
- Your offer letter, handbook, arbitration agreement, or severance paperwork
- Names and contact information for coworkers who witnessed the conduct
- Pay stubs or tax records showing what you earned before and after
Your first meeting with a New York City sexual harassment attorney is confidential and free. We’ll listen, ask questions, and tell you whether we think you have a case.
New York City Courts and Local Sexual Harassment Resources
Lawsuits under federal law are usually filed in the Southern District of New York at the Daniel Patrick Moynihan Courthouse, 500 Pearl Street, or in the Eastern District in Brooklyn. State court cases in Manhattan go to New York County Supreme Court at 60 Centre Street.
- Federal charges for city workers go through the EEOC New York District Office at 33 Whitehall Street in Lower Manhattan.
- City law claims are handled by NYC Commission on Human Rights at 40 Rector Street, and the state Division of Human Rights has offices in every borough.
- The New York Attorney General also publishes plain-language guidance on workplace harassment complaints.
Reach Out to Bloom Fudali to Schedule a Consultation
If someone at work has crossed the line, talk with an NYC sexual harassment lawyer before you resign or sign anything. The consultation is free, and we handle these cases on contingency. We’ll review your documents, explain your deadlines, and give you an honest assessment. Contact us to schedule a confidential case review.