Paralegal at Philadelphia Firm to Get Sexual Harassment Trial

Silvers, Langsam & Weitzman PC must face trial on a paralegal’s allegations that she was sexually harassed by her supervising attorney and others during her two months at the Philadelphia personal injury firm, a federal judge ruled.

Kimberly Hayes supported her claims with text messages she sent to a firm secretary and an SLW attorney’s testimony that Hayes had complained to him, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania said Feb. 28. The text messages and the attorney’s testimony support the claims even though they don’t show that Hayes’s complaints necessarily described harassment that was sexual in nature, the court said.

Hayes also pointed to a former SLW law clerk’s me-too testimony, alleging that Hayes’s supervisor had made her uncomfortable on two occasions when she was with the firm, Judge Wendy Beetlestone said. According to the law clerk, Frank Breitman once said she looked like a “Catholic school girl” and on another occasion described actresses in a movie he showed her as being “sexy.” The clerk’s account is backed by her mother, who also worked at SLW, the judge said.

The court rejected the firm’s contention that the harassment alleged by Hayes wasn’t severe or pervasive enough to violate Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act or Pennsylvania law. SLW was wrong that Hayes only alleged three incidents of harassment, the court said.

She instead identified “at least seven incidents within an eight-week period,” the judge said. These include an IT contractor saying she “had a nice ass” and Breitman’s lewd comment in response an firm managing partner Dean Weitzman hat now he would have “something sexy to look at” after Hayes starting sitting outside of office, Beetlestone said.

Another SLW attorney also allegedly directed a crude question at Hayes and the firm’s office manager allegedly told her to dress more like another paralegal who wore low cut shirts, the court said.

Hayes says Breitman also told her she was “the prettiest woman” he had ever seen and inappropriately touched her on he buttocks or elsewhere almost every week she worked at the firm, Beetlestone said.

SLW’s denials of the allegations and challenges to Hayes’ credibility are issues for a jury, the judge said.

Costello & Mains LLC represents Hayes. Littler Mendelson PC represents Silvers, Langsam & Weitzman.

The case is Hayes v. Silvers. Langsam & Weitzman, P.C., 2020 BL 74450, E.D. Pa., No. 2:19-cv-00940, 2/28/20.