WOODLAND HILLS—An employee of Los Angeles employment and civil rights law firm Ivie McNeill Wyatt Purcell & Diggs filed a lawsuit with the Superior Court of California on Friday, July 10 over an alleged sexual harassment from a partner of the firm.
Chaena Dade filed the suit against Rodney Diggs for allegedly making sexual remarks and advancements towards her after Dade had been brought back to the firm in 2018 after being promised to be made partner.
The suit outlines that Dade received various texts from Diggs: “For example, DIGGS texted Plaintiff during a firm-sponsored event in Las Vegas and said, “I wanna book another private room” and “Man we should make out now. Lol everyone downstairs!” The next day, he texted Plaintiff again, telling her “you did commit to be my girlfriend,” which was not true.
The suit also outlines an instance where they pair traveled to Italy in 2019 on a business trip and allegedly the defendant had tried to coerce the plaintiff to stay in his AirBnb instead of checking into her hotel room.
The defendant was then reported for breaking into her room with other men: “Sometime later, around 2 a.m. or 3 a.m., Plaintiff, who was asleep, heard a loud bang. She awoke to find DIGGS and two other males standing in room.”
The additional men ended up being hotel employees who tried to manage the situation.
The plaintiff has demanded a trial by jury where she wants to fight for several damages including special and punitive according to evidence.
