Las Vegas, Jul 18:A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by nine women who alleged they were sexually harassed by former casino mogul Steve Wynn.
The women, manicurists and makeup artists in a salon at the Wynn Las Vegas, were unnamed in the lawsuit and instead identified by their attorneys as Judy Doe No. 1 through Judy Doe No. 9.
Their decision to stay anonymous was one reason the judge dismissed the case in a Wednesday filing, arguing they hadn’t legally justified the need to stay anonymous to continue their case.
They sued the Wynn Las Vegas and Wynn Resorts Ltd, alleging that the companies did not do enough to prevent a hostile work environment. They alleged that the companies were aware of misconduct by Wynn towards female employees but did not investigate it and covered up any reported misconduct.
Wynn, 78, resigned in February 2018 as chairman and chief executive of Wynn Resorts. He has consistently denied sexual misconduct allegations, which were first reported in January 2018 by the Wall Street Journal.
Wynn was not named as a defendant in the women’s lawsuit. Wynn’s attorney L. Lin Wood said in an email message Friday night that he was not representing Wynn in the matter and would forward the message seeking comment to another Wynn attorney who was, Nate Lloyd. A voicemail message seeking comment from Lloyd was not immediately returned Friday night.
In the order dismissing the lawsuit, Judge James C. Mahan agreed with another judge’s earlier ruling that the women did not sufficiently justify their need to file their lawsuit anonymously using pseudonyms.
The women said in court filings that they chose to file anonymously because of fear of legal retaliation by Wynn, potentially being ostracised in their workplace and sensitive details that would upend their lives if made public.
Mahan also said the women did not sufficiently make their case in the complaint, using “generalised and vague statements without individualized factual support for their allegations.” The lawsuit was dismissed without prejudice, which means it can be refiled.
Phone and email messages seeking comment from the women’s attorneys, Wynn Resorts and attorneys for Wynn Resorts were not immediately returned Friday night. The lawsuit was originally filed in a Nevada court in September 2019 but was moved to a federal court a month later.
Wynn Resorts paid a $20 million fine in February 2019 to settle a Nevada gambling regulatory probe of claims that executives failed to investigate sexual misconduct claims against Wynn before he resigned. Massachusetts gambling regulators then levied a $35 million fine against the company two months later for failing to disclose years of allegations of sexual misconduct against Wynn. (AGENCIES)
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