Lawsuit: Weinstein Forced Staff to Facilitate 'Conquests'

New York's attorney general says he has filed a lawsuit that could block the sale of the Weinstein Company because he doesn't want the "perpetrators" or "enablers" of sexual misconduct to be "unjustly enriched." The civil suit, which names TWC, Harvey Weinstein, and Bob Weinstein, accuses the entertainment company of violating civil rights and business laws by ignoring evidence of Harvey Weinstein's sexual harassment and misconduct, reports Reuters. Sources tell the New York Times that the filing of the lawsuit brought an abrupt halt to talks to finalize a deal for TWC, which has been fighting for months to avoid bankruptcy, to sell itself to a group of investors led by former Obama administration member Maria Contreras-Sweet.

Any sale of TWC must ensure that victims will be compensated and "neither perpetrators nor enablers will be unjustly enriched," New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said in a statement, per the Hollywood Reporter. The New York lawsuit states that Harvey Weinstein had no fewer than three groups of employees assigned to facilitate his sexual "conquests," including women who were hired as producers but were pressured to meet with women for Weinstein's "personal interests" instead, USA Today reports. "This compelled service demeaned and humiliated them, contributing to the hostile work environment," the lawsuit states. A lawyer for Weinstein claims there was "no criminality" in his client's conduct and Weinstein actually "promoted more women to key executive positions than any other industry leader." (More Harvey Weinstein stories.)