With the presidential election just around the corner, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are neck-and-neck in the polls, focusing their efforts on crucial battleground states. However, an unfolding controversy has blindsided the Harris campaign. Allegations of inappropriate and misogynistic behavior have emerged against Harris’s husband, Doug Emhoff, from his time at the law firm Venable, as reported by DailyMail.com.
Former colleagues at Venable have accused Emhoff of using expletives, organizing men-only cocktail hours, and revoking work perks from women who did not flirt with him. They also claim that he exclusively selected young, attractive female associates to accompany him in a limousine to various events.
Compounding these issues, a 2019 lawsuit alleges sex discrimination by other partners at the Los Angeles office that Emhoff managed. The lawsuit includes serious accusations that Emhoff, while engaged to Harris, hired an ‘unqualified’ part-time model as a legal secretary because she was “young, attractive, and friendly with the powerful men in the office.”
The allegations are the latest in a series that could severely damage Emhoff’s public persona, which has been carefully crafted by the Harris campaign as that of a feminist ally and devoted spouse. Earlier revelations from August include accusations that the Los Angeles attorney was unfaithful to his first wife and fathered a child with his daughter’s grade school teacher, who also served as a nanny. Emhoff admitted on Saturday to having an affair during his first marriage after the British tabloid published details of the alleged relationship.
“During my first marriage, Kerstin and I went through some tough times on account of my actions. I took responsibility, and in the years since, we worked through things as a family and have come out stronger on the other side,” Emhoff said in a statement to CNN. The circumstances of the relationship and the details surrounding it were known to Joe Biden’s vetting committee four years ago as Harris was being considered for the vice presidential slot on the ticket, a person familiar with the conversations informed CNN. The person also mentioned that Emhoff had disclosed the affair to Harris well before their marriage.
Former colleagues from the Venable Los Angeles office, led by Emhoff from 2006 to 2017, are now speaking out about his behavior, which they describe as ‘inappropriate’ and ‘a**hole-like’ during his tenure. They agreed to share their experiences on the condition of anonymity, citing concerns about potential backlash.
A senior ex-staffer recounted an incident where Emhoff allegedly ‘bragged’ about his reaction to a female partner at the firm. According to the staffer, Emhoff boasted to his male colleagues that he had ‘put her in her place’ after yelling ‘get the f*** out of my office’ at her. “She had to ask him something,” the former staffer explained. “His office door was closed. She asked his secretary if he was on the phone. When the secretary said no, she tapped on the door. He didn’t answer, so she slightly opened the door and peeked in. That’s when he said, ‘get the f*** out of my office.’”
“What’s worse was he bragged about it to the management at Venable and they were aghast. He’s an a**hole. He told them how he “put her in her place”. A misogynist, that’s who does that.” A female former staffer at the firm disclosed that Emhoff was widely recognized as “very flirty,” and not reciprocating his advances could land someone on his disfavor list. This ex-Venable lawyer accused him of “favoritism,” elaborating that the repercussions for not engaging flirtatiously with him included missing out on preferred case assignments. “There were deadlines that, if you were one of his favorite people, wouldn’t apply. But if you weren’t, they would,” she revealed to DailyMail.
Another woman, who spent several years at the firm, recounted how Emhoff hosted men-only cocktail nights. “He had, for many years, cocktail parties where only men were invited. In the office, on Friday evening,” she stated. When a colleague raised this issue with Venable around 2010, these exclusive gatherings were discontinued.
A female attorney further alleged that Emhoff exploited his position by demanding a portion of fees from new clients, leveraging his authority to assign staff to cases. “If you bring in a client, you get compensated,” she explained. “He was in charge of the litigation department, so he staffed your cases. To get your case staffed, you had to give him part of your origination [bonus], or it wouldn’t happen. It’s a common practice in law firms.”
Another junior attorney at Venable described Emhoff’s preferential treatment towards certain staff members at social events. “If there was an event, like the Justice Ball, he would favor certain people. Usually it was young, pretty girls. And he would prefer for them to ride with him. He would get a limo,” she said. “I just don’t think his behavior was appropriate for the position he was in.”
A senior former staffer at Venable confirmed to DailyMail that Emhoff’s alleged inappropriate behavior was an open secret within the firm. In a related case, a former legal secretary at Venable, Marjan Rabbi, sued the firm and two of its LA partners in 2019 for sex discrimination, claiming she was yelled at, humiliated, and demeaned by senior attorneys. Although Emhoff was not named as a defendant, he was specifically mentioned in Rabbi’s complaint. The legal filing highlighted that Emhoff was known for having a glamorous yet ‘unqualified’ secretary in her 20s, hired because of her youth, attractiveness, and connections with influential men.
The same year Emhoff married then-California Attorney General Kamala Harris, he was promoted to West Coast Managing Director in 2015.