E. Jean Carroll’s lawyer leaves law firm following workplace misconduct allegations

Roberta Kaplan, a prominent lawyer best known for ending the ban on gay marriage and her advocacy work for sexual assault victims, is leaving the law firm she formed in 2017.

Kaplan’s exit from Kaplan Hecker & Fink comes following reports to the New York Times from those who worked with her that she mistreated lawyers and cultivated an unprofessional office culture. She allegedly insulted employees, made inappropriate comments about their looks, and threatened their careers.

Her lawyers denied those allegations and said Kaplan and her firm took allegations of workplace misconduct seriously.

“There is nothing more unremarkable than trial lawyers using colorful language, criticizing their peers and representing diverse clients with no expectation of ideological purity,” Kaplan’s lawyers told the outlet.

Before her departure, Kaplan was removed by colleagues from her firm’s management committee.

“It was Robbie’s decision to leave the firm,” the firm’s two named partners, Julie Fink and Sean Hecker, said in a statement. “We wish her the very best and look forward to working with her and her new firm in the future.”

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As a leader in the #MeToo movement, who represented clients such as writer E. Jean Carroll against former President Donald Trump over sexual assault allegations, and fought against high-profile members of the entertainment industry, Kaplan caught flak from members of her firm for consulting with then-New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo over sexual harassment allegations against him in 2020. The matter led to Kaplan to resign as chairwoman of the Time’s Up board.

Kaplan’s legal assistance for Cuomo became known months later thanks to a report released by the state attorney general. This marked the beginning of tensions within the law firm, according to sources.