Robert De Niro first sued his assistant, who then sued the actor.
Robert De Niro reportedly shouted in court. KCS Presse / MEGA
Actor Robert De Niro80, is currently engaged in a heated legal battle.
In 2019, De Niro sued his former assistant by Graham Chase Robinson to court for breach of work obligation. According to De Niro, among other things, Robinson looked Friendsseries during his working hours, behaved in a controlling manner and stole millions of loyalty points from him.
Two months later, Robinson sued the actor for gender discrimination, toxic working conditions and retaliation. According to Robinson, De Niro threw lewd comments at her and told her to do household chores, such as washing his sheets and buttoning his shirts.
De Niro testified at the New York City courthouse on the 30th-31st. October ET Online – and Sky News -magazines, the actor seemed tense and frustrated throughout the trial.
– This is unbelievable! De Niro screamed in the courtroom.
De Niro raised his voice again in response to claims by Robinson’s legal team that in 2017 the actor had harassed him in the wee hours of the morning by asking her to take him to the hospital.
– It happened once when I broke my back falling down the stairs, De Niro stated.
The actor even said that he went to sleep for a couple of hours after his accident and didn’t call his assistant until around 4-5 in the morning.
The story continues after the picture.
According to Robert De Niro, his assistant was controlling, demanding and always playing the victim. Luca Carlino/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
Robinson’s Solicitors Brent Hannafan and Andrew McCurdy claim that De Niro was a very demanding employer who set unreasonable demands on his assistant. According to Robinson’s account, De Niro’s girlfriend Tiffany Chen was also extremely jealous of him. The trial heard e-mail messages in which, according to Robinson, Chen described him.
– This mother-in-law needs to be put on probation, the message read according to the lawyers.
Both De Niro and his lawyer Richard Schoenstein have denied the allegations. De Niro even defended his partner, saying that Chen thought Robinson was acting like she was the actor’s wife.
– He could have been right, De Niro stated, and Robinson’s legal team denied the claim.
Schoenstein urged the jury to note that not all of Robinson’s statements should be believed. De Niro’s legal team emphasized that Robinson betrayed his employer’s trust and behaved inappropriately. According to De Niro, Robinson was controlling, demanding and always playing the victim.
In addition, Robinson transferred 5 million loyalty points from De Niro’s account just months before he left the company. For these reasons, De Niro did not want to act as Robinson’s recommender when he quit his job.
Robinson is demanding $12 million in damages from De Niro. According to Robinson, De Niro has caused him damage both in terms of reputation and mental well-being.