James Toback DESTROYED in Court—$1.7 Billion Sex Abuse Verdict Rocks Hollywood.
The lawsuit, originally filed in December 2022, was brought under New York's Adult Survivors Act.
A New York State jury has ordered James Toback to pay $1.68 billion to 40 women who accused him of sexual abuse, lawyers representing the women said.
The jury granted the plaintiffs a total of $280 million in compensatory damages and $1.4 billion in punitive damages, according to a press release from Nix Patterson, LLP. As of Wednesday evening, the verdict documentation had not yet appeared on the New York State Court System's website.
The lawsuit, initiated in December 2022, was filed under New York's Adult Survivors Act, which allowed a one-year window for survivors of sexual abuse to file civil claims, regardless of when the abuse occurred. Court documents revealed that the plaintiffs accused Toback, 80, of using his reputation, power, and influence within the entertainment industry—where he is known as an award-winning director, screenwriter, and member of the Harvard Club of New York City—to lure young women, including the plaintiffs, into vulnerable situations. The allegations detail a pattern of deceit, coercion, force, and intimidation, ultimately resulting in false imprisonment, sexual abuse, assault, and/or battery.
According to Variety, Toback did not attend the trial and issued a blanket denial earlier in the case, the report includes an assertion that all sexual encounters were consensual. It was noted that he represented himself during the proceedings and failed to attend pre-trial hearings, resulting in a default judgment against him. During the trial, 20 women provided live testimony, while video depositions from an additional 20 women were presented to the jury, according to Variety.
"This verdict signifies justice. More importantly, it represents the reclamation of power from the abusers and their enablers, restoring it to those whom he sought to dominate and silence," stated Brad Beckworth, the lead attorney for the plaintiffs.
"Several years ago, when the Me-Too movement began, I think many of us thought that we were past the point where men in positions of power would prey on women and try to steal their dignity and honor in exchange for allowing them to advance in their careers," his statement continued. "We now know that the movement didn't go far enough. We still have a lot of people in this country who abuse their power—and there are many more who turn a blind eye to it."
Toback faced his first allegations of sexual assault in an October 2017 article published by the Los Angeles Times, which reported claims from 38 women who accused the former Oscar nominee of sexual harassment over the years. Subsequently, over 200 women came forward with similar accounts to those reported by the publication. Following these revelations, several Hollywood actresses, including Selma Blair, Rachel McAdams, and Julianne Moore, began to share their own experiences with the director.
In a subsequent interview with Rolling Stone, Toback refuted the allegations, labeling them as “pathetic lies.” Although the Beverly Hills Police Department announced that it was looking into multiple complaints against Toback, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office confirmed in April 2018 that he would not face prosecution in Los Angeles regarding the numerous allegations of sexual misconduct leveled against him.
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