A federal judge in New York is holding a closed-door meeting to discuss a request by Donald Trump’s presidential campaign lawyers to withdraw from a gender discrimination lawsuit filed by former senior advisor Arlene “A.J.” Delgado. The law firm at LaRocca, Hornik, Greenberg, Kittredge, Carlin & McPartland cited “an irreparable breakdown in the attorney-client relationship” as the reason for their motion. The firm requested to explain the details of this breakdown in an in camera conference with the judge, without members of the public or press present. Delgado’s suit, filed in 2019, alleges that she was denied job responsibilities and a White House position due to her pregnancy by campaign advisor Jason Miller. She also claims that the defendants reneged on a settlement agreement in 2017.
Magistrate Judge Katharine Parker scheduled the in camera conference with the defendants and their attorneys, excluding Delgado, to discuss the law firm’s request to withdraw from the case. Delgado objected to the motion, as it was filed just days before key information was due from the campaign related to gender discrimination, pregnancy discrimination, and sexual harassment complaints. She questioned the abrupt timing of the withdrawal motion, as it came shortly after the court’s order to produce this information. Delgado represented herself in the suit in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, confronting the sudden decision by the firm to withdraw from the case after nearly seven years of representation.
The lawsuit filed by Delgado accuses the Trump campaign, former White House chief of staff Reince Priebus, former White House advisor Steve Bannon, and former White House press secretary Sean Spicer of gender discrimination. Delgado claimed that the Trump campaign retaliated against her for her pregnancy by removing her job responsibilities and blocking her from a White House position. She also alleged that the defendants failed to honor a settlement agreement reached in 2017 to resolve the complaint privately. Delgado expressed skepticism about the reasons given for the law firm’s sudden withdrawal from the case, questioning the circumstances leading to the decision.
The closed-door meeting, requested by the law firm representing the Trump campaign, is intended to provide an opportunity to explain the breakdown in the attorney-client relationship that prompted the withdrawal motion. Delgado raised concerns about the timing of the withdrawal request, coming just days before crucial information was to be produced in the discrimination lawsuit. She emphasized the importance of the information related to gender discrimination, pregnancy discrimination, and sexual harassment complaints, which was ordered by the court to be provided by the campaign. Delgado’s objections to the firm’s motion to withdraw highlighted the unexpected nature of the decision and the impact it could have on the ongoing litigation.
