Genie E. Harrison

Most people can’t will themselves past traumatic experiences and compartmentalize negative thoughts, Harrison said. Often, the only way a victim is able to conquer their past is to find a venue for pursuing justice.

“These traumatic experiences, when they’re not properly addressed and metabolized, can affect every aspect of our lives,” Harrison said.

Both in the courtroom and at the Legislature, Harrison’s been a major voice in Hollywood in the wake of recent movements to hold sexual harassers accountable. In January, she testified at a California Assembly Rules Subcommittee hearing on sexual harassment, and has worked in an advisory role to develop legislation aimed at ending secret settlements in sexual harassment cases. Harrison said settlement agreements can deny victims an opportunity to confront their abusers on their own terms.

“Victims don’t heal until they’ve had an opportunity to really talk about it, and confront their perpetrator and hold them accountable,” Harrison said. “But when we muzzle ourselves on a potentially ongoing basis with a confidentiality agreement, that really deprives victims part of the healing process.”

Currently, she represents the former personal assistant of embattled movie producer Harvey Weinstein in a sexual harassment claim brought in New York. Harrison’s client was chosen to be on the creditor’s committee for The Weinstein Company’s bankruptcy, and Harrison handles the ongoing matter on a day-to-day basis.

Harrison said Weinstein is the quintessential example of a Hollywood abuser, wielding his power as leverage against the industry’s most vulnerable. If Weinstein were working in the mail room, Harrison said, he wouldn’t have lasted a day. The fight is not just about pursuing justice for individuals, Harrison said, it’s about addressing systemic change.

“It’s always a question of the tone and the standards being set from the top down. You don’t end up with serial harassment unless the corporation has failed in its duties,” Harrison said.

While the #MeToo movement and revelations about Weinstein added gas to the fire, Harrison said she felt the election of President Donald J. Trump marked the true turning point for accountability in Hollywood.

“We heard that guy on tape say what he said,” Harrison said. “I’m sorry, but [women] are not going to be quiet about that. We’re not going to be quiet about accountability.”

Harrison serves as the 2018 second vice president of Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles, or CAALA, and routinely teaches employment law and trial work as part of her role with the organization. When Harrison is elevated to CAALA’s president in 2021, she will be only the fifth woman in the organization’s history to fill the role.

— Steven Crighton