With the Weinstein scandal monopolising the media's attention and the#MeToo and #TimesUp movements gaining more weight every day, lawyers across the United States of America have been keeping busy representing victims of sexual predators. While the cause is great ,and a wake-up call is much needed, the cases have also opened the door to crook attorneys, wanting to benefit from media attention for their own benefit, and 15-minutes of fame.
One particularly interesting case study is that of Jeff Herman.
Herman is currently acting for Weinstein accusers Dominique Huett and Kadian Noble, however his own conduct has been subject to at least 12 civil cases, four IRS liens, two disciplinary procedures for dishonesty, and most shockingly, accusations of rape by his former teenage receptionist.
The self-proclaimed "aggressive, passionate and skilled,nationally-recognized trial lawyer and advocate for survivors of rape, sexual abuse and sexual exploitation" began his career as a commercial litigations lawyer in Florida, before shifting his practice to specialise in sexual abuse cases in 1998. Extraordinarily, it is in that year his then 19-year-old receptionist accused the attorney of a brutal rape, after just 2 months on the job.
The Hollywood Reporter initially reported the case in December 2017, and uploaded a link towards the police report filed by the young victim just a few days following the attack: “After taking off his pants she stated that he put his head between her legs, and stated “I want to eat you out”… She said stop, and squirmed away… Once again she pushed away and told him that she wasn’t going to have sex with him… when she refused, he took her hand, and put it on his penis. At that time he said “just finish me off.””
In a despicable turn of events, and going against police recommendation, all charges were dropped, and the case was never brought to court. To this day, the ex-Broward County assistant state attorney Dennis Nicewander defends his decision: "Cases in which we believe the victims but cannot initiate lawsuits are frequent". Another typical case of her word against his.
When contacted for a statement regarding his actions, Herman mumbled "Oh, crap". No doubt he was hoping these allegations would never resurface and tarnish the role he is undertaking in his most recent Weinstein venture.
Let us not forget Herman's stunt in 2014, when he represented in court the now infamous Michael Egan who accused television executives Garth Ancier and David Neuman as well as X-Men director Bryan Singerof sexual abuse. The case crumbled when it was revealed young actor Egan was a fantasist. Herman and Egan made a great pair, both money-hungry and desperate for fame.
No doubt Herman was frantic for a big pay-cheque to cover his four substantial federal tax liens ranging from $246,570 to $911,972, a credit due to American Express worth $66,019, the foreclosure action of his Boca Raton property, and fees linked to the 12 civil cases running against him.
It doesn't come as a surprise he is now participating in the Weinstein scandal, searching for the next big case he can sink his nails into, in an attempt to clear his rocky reputation and career.
We can only hope attention will be brought to these so-called lawyers and hypocrites to what has become the most important cause of the decade. Let us shed the light on Jeff Herman and the other master-pretenders discrediting women's rights one case at a time.