The potential sale of the troubled Weinstein Co. is under doubt, after Attorney General Eric Schneiderman threatened to intervene.
Updated: Attorney General Eric Schneiderman confirmed on Twitter that his office is filing a civil rights lawsuit against Weinstein Co.
#BREAKING: My office just filed a civil rights lawsuit against the Weinstein Company.
Any sale of the company must ensure victims are adequately compensated, employees are protected, and that enablers of sexual misconduct will not be unjustly enriched.https://t.co/VGcDpc2pkT pic.twitter.com/GyHV9pUS72
— Eric Schneiderman (@AGSchneiderman) February 11, 2018
Original story continues below.
A $500 million sale had been agreed with Maria Contreras-Sweet, a former Obama administration official, but that offer has been withdrawn according to The New York Post.
The reason for Contreras-Sweet’s withdrawal? Her infuriation over New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman “insisting on inserting a monitor on the board of the new company.” It is unlikely, however, that that was the only factor.
Related: Here’s everything you need to know about the sexual harassment accusations against Harvey Weinstein
Contreras-Sweet had agreed a deal with Weinstein Co., which would provide compensation to victims of Harvey Weinstein’s abuse. As well as compensation, Contreras-Sweet also promised to appoint a majority female board of directors. However, the Attorney General had some concerns over the sale.
Those concerns, as reported by Variety, were largely regarding the potential new CEO David Glasser. Glasser served as Harvey Weinstein’s right hand man, and the Attorney General now believes that he failed to protect employees of the company from Weinstein’s abuse.
Additionally, the Attorney General called the proposed victims fund into question and whether it would provide sufficient compensation to those affected.
As it currently stands, Contreras-Sweet’s offer is now off the table. That deal had been expected to close as early as this week.
Whether another party will step in with an offer is uncertain. A lawsuit is expected from the Attorney General in the coming days to impose conditions on any future sale of the company.
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