Claire-Lise Y. Kutlay

Employment Litigation & Trial

Los Angeles

Claire-Lise Kutlay began practicing in 2015 with a focus on employment litigation, driven by a passion for seeking justice for those wronged in their workplace.

"These are such important issues both for our individual clients and the community at large and real change can occur when employees have a strong advocate to hold employers accountable and correct wrongdoing," she said.

She takes pride in representing individuals like Asta Jonasson, who Kutlay said bravely filed a lawsuit against high-profile actor Vin Diesel and his film companies for sexual assault and wrongful termination. The lawsuit alleges Diesel sexually assaulted Asta Jonasson, his assistant at the time, in a hotel suite in 2010. Mere hours later, she was allegedly fired in retaliation for resisting his sexual assault.

"The case is ongoing but has already had widespread impact due to the high-profile media coverage," Kutlay said. "Ms. Jonasson's courageous decision to publicly tell her story calls attention to the injustices that many people face when they are subjected to unwanted and unlawful sexual assault in the workplace."

Kutlay also represented Bryan Hoskins, an Investigative Sergeant for the County of Monterey, in a lawsuit alleging unlawful termination and retaliation.

Hoskins, a vocal advocate for sexual assault victims, was terminated for refusing to endorse the now-Sheriff-Coroner during an election. The lawsuit, which challenged the abuse of power by an elected official, concluded with favorable terms for Hoskins, including his reinstatement.

"This is an important lawsuit against an elected official who abused her position of power to retaliate against a long-standing employee who refused to engage in political activity and provide an endorsement during an election," Kutlay said. "The case has since settled on favorable terms for Mr. Hoskins, including his reinstatement of employment."

She said in any litigation, some of the most important challenges will be developing a simple and compelling narrative even where the facts or legal theories are complex.

"In employment cases, some key challenges are marshalling evidence to prove that the employer's actions were discriminatory or retaliatory, particularly where many of the key witnesses often remain employed and thus can only be accessed through formal discovery, including for potentially friendly witnesses who often fear retaliation," Kutlay said.