White & Case Accused of Hostile, Discriminatory Workplace (1)

A White & Case LLP employee claims the firm discriminated and retaliated against him when he demanded an investigation into the dissemination of intimate photos taken of him at a firm party.

The firm, and especially its parties, have become a “breeding ground for misconduct, sexual harassment, and the degradation of minority employees,” says the complaint filed in the Bronx County Supreme Court. The plaintiff, known as John Doe, is alleging the firm created a hostile work environment, retaliated and discriminated against him, and allowed unlawful dissemination of an intimate image.

The plaintiff, a Hispanic man who works as a digital production specialist at the firm, says he was stripped naked and photographed by his supervisor while unconscious during a firm retreat in California in 2023. The pictures were circulated among firm management and staff for years, unbeknownst to the plaintiff until he saw the photos at a separate work event in London in 2026 where colleagues teased him about his anatomy, according to the complaint.

The plaintiff demanded an independent investigation, but he says White & Case conducted “only a minimal ‘investigation,’” the results of which are only reviewable by the firm’s lawyers and management.

“Rather than rectifying this egregious violation, White & Case has shielded the perpetrators, conducted a sham internal investigation, and retaliated against Plaintiff for speaking out,” the complaint says.

The plaintiff alleges the images continue to be disseminated among firm employees and have possibly been made public. He says he doesn’t feel safe at his job, and was forced to take unpaid leave to seek medical treatment for PTSD and severe anxiety when the firm refused to grant him paid leave while an internal investigation was pending.

He is asking for the photos to be removed from all White & Case devices, and for the court to require the firm to implement mandatory harassment and discrimination trainings.

A White & Case spokesperson said the claims “are baseless,” and that the firm is “committed to maintaining a professional, respectful and inclusive workplace, and we have robust policies and procedures in place to support the high standards we have for our people and our Firm.”

“It is profoundly disturbing that these incidents occurred within the workplace culture of a firm of White & Case’s global standing,” said Eric M. Baum of Eisenberg & Baum LLP, which represents the plaintiff. “Every employer has a mandate to maintain a non-harassing environment and to take reports of sexual misconduct seriously.”

The case is Doe v. White & Case LLP, N.Y. Sup. Ct., No. 805573/2026E, complaint filed 3/25/26.