Harvey Weinstein victims to share in $27m payout

Women who have accused Harvey Weinstein of sexual assault or harassment will be entitled to payments from a $US19m ($27.5m) fund.

Jailed film producer Harvey Weinstein. Picture: AFP

Women who have accused Harvey Weinstein of sexual assault or say they were harassed while working at his former film studio will be entitled to payments from a $US19m ($27.5m) fund being created to compensate them, months after the former Hollywood producer was convicted of sex crimes.

Money for the fund is coming from insurance as part of a settlement resolving civil lawsuits, including a proposed class action against Weinstein and a separate civil-rights suit brought by the New York Attorney-General’s office. That lawsuit accuses Weinstein Co’s former executives and board members of failing to protect employees from a hostile work environment and its namesake chairman’s sexual misconduct.

A New York jury in February found Weinstein guilty of first-degree criminal sexual act and third-degree rape charges, resulting in a 23-year prison sentence. He faces criminal prosecution on similar alle­gations in Los Angeles.

The settlement deal must be approved by a US bankruptcy judge in Delaware, where Weinstein Co is being liquidated.

The product of more than a year of on-and-off negotiations, the agreement also requires ­approval from a federal judge in New York, where the class-­action lawsuit was filed.

The deal releases women who signed confidentiality, non­-disclosure or non-disparagement deals with Weinstein Co or former company representatives related to any sexual misconduct by Weinstein from those agreements, the Attorney-General’s office said. A confidential process will be set up through the bankruptcy court for women to submit claims for compensation from the $19m fund.

More than 80 women have accused Weinstein of misconduct, according to court papers filed in 2018 by Weinstein Co.

“Harvey Weinstein and the Weinstein Company failed their female employees. After all the harassment, threats, and discrimination, their victims are ­finally receiving some justice,” said Letitia James, the New York state Attorney-General.

How to compensate women who have accused Weinstein has been an open question since his film studio collapsed.

Weinstein Co filed for bankruptcy in March 2018 and sold its film and television assets as ­lawyers worked to compose a ­liquidation plan to pay victims as well as the company’s creditors.

Women’s claims for compensation will be reviewed by a court-appointed administrator, with individual awards ranging from $7500 to $750,000, court papers say.

The settlement ensures women who have accused Weinstein of abuse will be compensated, a challenging prospect because of Weinstein Co’s bankruptcy. Under the bankruptcy rules, the women’s lawsuits are treated as unsecured claims against the former studio along with other business debt and would be paid out only after bankruptcy fees, bank loans and other secured debt that ranks higher in terms of repayment.

“Despite initial setbacks, we continued to fight,” said Beth Fegan, a lawyer who has represented women in the class action lawsuit.

Weinstein, his film studio, its former board members and associates have faced several civil suits in the US, Canada and Britain, with some allegations dating back more than a decade.

Former board members have ­denied wrongdoing.

The New York Attorney-General’s office, under then-chief Eric Schneiderman, brought its lawsuit weeks before the studio’s bankruptcy filing.

Mr Schneiderman resigned in May 2018 after he was accused of sexual misconduct.

“Harvey Weinstein left a trail of trauma that was crushing for many women,” said Louisette Geiss, a lead plaintiff in the ­proposed class action against Weinstein and co-chair of the Weinstein Co unsecured creditors committee formed in the studio’s bankruptcy.

“There is no amount of money that can make up for this injustice, but I’m extremely proud of what we have accomplished today,” Ms Geiss said.

The Wall Street Journal