Former personal assistant to Robert De Niro, Graham Chase Robinson, was awarded over $1.2 million by a jury on Thursday. The jury held De Niro’s company, Canal Productions, responsible for creating a toxic work environment and engaging in gender discrimination and retaliation against Robinson. While De Niro himself was found not personally liable, the jury ordered his company to make two payments of $632,142 to Robinson.
The trial lasted for two weeks, with De Niro spending three days in court, including two days on the witness stand. The legal battle between De Niro and Robinson began in April 2019 when she quit her job. De Niro was not present in the courtroom when the verdict was announced.
Robinson, 41, expressed her happiness with the verdict, smiling as it was delivered and hugging her lawyers once the jury left the room. Outside the courthouse, she appeared both joyful and emotional but did not comment on the outcome.
Both sides claimed victory, with Robinson’s attorney, Brent Hannafan, stating that they were thrilled with the verdict. On the other hand, De Niro’s attorney, Richard Schoenstein, called it a great victory for De Niro, emphasizing that he was absolved of any personal liability. Schoenstein also mentioned that the awarded amount was relatively modest compared to the $12 million sought by Robinson.
Schoenstein added that De Niro’s legal team might seek to reduce the award through post-verdict motions, but he was uncertain if there would be any. He also didn’t know if there would be an appeal.
During the trial, Robinson testified that De Niro and his girlfriend, Tiffany Chen, teamed up against her, turning her once-loved job into a nightmare. De Niro and Chen, however, claimed that Robinson became problematic when she started making escalating demands to remain employed, as she aspired to move beyond Canal Productions.
Emails were presented in court, showing Chen expressing concerns about Robinson’s “imaginary intimacy” with De Niro and wishing she was his wife. Robinson denied having any romantic interest in De Niro.
On the witness stand, De Niro admitted to many of the claims made by Robinson, including increasing her salary and title. However, he accused Robinson of stealing about $85,000 worth of airline miles from him and violating his trust.
De Niro also denied being abusive or yelling at Robinson, stating that any claims made against him were nonsense. At one point, he looked at Robinson and shouted, “Shame on you, Chase Robinson!”
Robinson testified that she quit her job due to an emotional and mental breakdown, which left her overwhelmed and feeling like she had hit rock bottom. She claimed to have suffered from anxiety and depression since quitting and has been unemployed for four years, despite applying for over 600 jobs.
Prior to Robinson’s lawsuit against him, De Niro’s lawyers sued her for breach of loyalty and fiduciary duty, seeking $6 million in damages and the return of the 5 million airline miles. However, the jury rejected these claims.
De Niro, a two-time Oscar-winning actor, has been involved in numerous acclaimed films over the past five decades. Currently, he can be seen in Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon.”
