This is how much compensation Harvey Weinstein’s victims will be getting
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- Moya Lothian-McLean
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The settlement is less than half of what was originally agreed.
Lawyers for Harvey Weinstein say the film producer has reached a settlement deal worth $44m (£34.7m) with women who have accused him of sexually inappropriate behaviour.
Compensation to resolve civil lawsuits of sexual harassment – which is not classed as a criminal violation – has been tentatively agreed, with lawyer Adam Harris reportedly telling a judge that that an ‘economic agreement’ had been made. Over 80 women have levelled accusations of sexual misconduct at Weinstein since October 2017.
The 67-year-old former head of film studio Miramax and The Weinstein Company, which produced the likes of Pulp Fiction and Amélie, is also set to stand trial in September, over charges of sexual assault by two women, including accusations of rape.
If the civil settlement goes ahead, reports say plaintiffs will receive around $30m, with the rest of the balance going to cover legal fees.
The new deal is less than half of what was initially proposed for victims to receive – last year a fund was created dole out $90m to those accusing Weinstein but collapsed after investor talks to buy The Weinstein Company fell through.
The Weinstein Company – once said to be worth $800m (£629m) – filed for bankruptcy following the allegations against its co-founder.
Weinstein’s forthcoming trial is set to be one of the most high-profile of the decade, given both his position as a producer so powerful he’s been thanked in Oscar-winning speeches as many times as ‘God’, and the celebrity status of many of his publicly identified accusers, including Ashley Judd and Mira Sorvino.
In February 2019 it was reported that Weinstein was desperately trying to hire a ‘skirt’ – a derogatory term for a female lawyer – to join his new legal defence team to ‘soften his image’. But the mogul was finding it difficult to track down top female lawyers willing to join his cause.
Wonder why.
Images: Getty