Andy Cohen Fires Back: Asks Judge to Dismiss 'Speculative' and 'Demonstrably False' Lawsuit From Leah McSweeney Claiming Drugs, Booze and Discrimination
Andy Cohen has asked a judge to dismiss Leah McSweeney's 'speculative' and 'demonstrably false' lawsuit claiming drugs, booze, and discrimination.
May 25 2024, Published 10:35 a.m. ET
Bravo's Andy Cohen has fired back against former Real Housewives of New York star Leah McSweeney, asking a judge to toss out her "speculative" and "demonstrably false" discrimination lawsuit, RadarOnline.com has learned.
In a federal lawsuit filed last month and obtained by RadarOnline.com, McSweeney claimed that Cohen "tormented, demoralized, demeaned, harassed and retaliated" against her "because she is a woman with disabilities, such as alcohol use disorder and various mental health disorders, all in the name of selling drama."
The complaint, which also listed Warner Bros Discovery, Shed Media, Bravo Media, and NBC Universal as defendants, alleged that Cohen fosters a "rotted workplace culture that uniquely depended on pressuring its employees to consume alcohol," "engages in cocaine use with Housewives and other Bravolebrities that he employs," and gives the "Housewives with whom he uses cocaine with more favorable treatment and edits."
In a federal lawsuit filed last month, McSweeney claimed that Cohen "tormented, demoralized, demeaned, harassed and retaliated" against her.
Cohen's lawyers denied the allegations, calling them "categorically false" and demanding a public apology. Deadline reports that he, along with co-defendants NBCU, WBD, Lisa Shannon, John Paparazzo, Darren Ward, Shed Media US Inc, and Bravo Media, filed a motion this week asking U.S. District Judge Lewis J. Liman to set a date for a hearing to get the matter dismissed.
"While Plaintiff attempts to overwhelm with a 754-paragraph complaint, even a cursory review of her allegations reveals that many concern matters entirely irrelevant to her claims and most are devoid of any factual or legal support, speculative, misleading, and/or demonstrably false," Cohen's lawyers wrote in a memorandum of law supporting the motion.
Cohen's lawyers denied the allegations, calling them "categorically false" and demanding a public apology.
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"Many of Plaintiff's claims, supported only by the most conclusory and threadbare allegations, should be dismissed as a matter of law," the 32-page memo continued. "The rest of Plaintiff’s claims should be dismissed because they impermissibly seek to abridge Defendants’ First Amendment rights to tailor and adjust the messages they wish to convey in their creative works, including through cast selection and other creative decisions."
"Under well-settled law, even if Defendants did want to use the Housewives franchise to feature inebriated cast members (which they do not), that message — achieved through casting and directing decisions — would be protected under the First Amendment."
In response, McSweeney's lawyer Sarah Matz said, "We do not agree that the motion has merit — it mostly argues for dismissal on technical grounds essentially saying that Defendants were allowed to discriminate against Ms. McSweeney — not that they did not do it.
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In response, McSweeney's lawyer Sarah Matz said, "We do not agree that the motion has merit — it mostly argues for dismissal on technical grounds essentially saying that Defendants were allowed to discriminate against Ms. McSweeney — not that they did not do it."
"To agree with the Defendants would be to essentially say that the creative industries are not subject to anti-discrimination and anti-retaliation laws and that networks could engage in discrimination and retaliation with impunity, which is not the law."
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