Former associate who alleged sex assault by BigLaw partner is sued for defamation
Baker & McKenzie has sued a former associate for defamation in an updated lawsuit, alleging she made “unequivocally false” accusations on LinkedIn that she had been sexually assaulted by Maurice Bellan, the managing partner of the firm’s office in Washington, D.C.
The revised suit, filed Sept. 30 in the District of Columbia Superior Court, adds an allegation that the ex-associate, Brooke Radford, had a relationship with Bellan’s son.
Radford and Bellan’s son “ended their nearly two-year relationship” just a few months before she was fired, the suit says. “Disappointed with both outcomes, Ms. Radford sought retribution from the common denominator—Mr. Bellan—by intentionally spreading lies about him to destroy his reputation and the reputation of his firm,” the updated complaint states.
As retribution, the suit says, Radford “engaged in a campaign of posting on LinkedIn repeated public statements that Mr. Bellan sexually assaulted her and that Baker covered up such misconduct—all of which are unequivocally false.”
Radford was fired in the spring of 2025, partly for making unauthorized purchases on her law firm credit card and failing to cooperate in an investigation, the suit alleges.
The Sept. 30 lawsuit is an updated version of a prior lawsuit Baker & McKenzie told the ABA Journal it filed on Sept. 19. Bellan is a plaintiff in both versions.
Radford declined to comment in response to two requests by the ABA Journal.
On LinkedIn, Radford linked to a story about the prior lawsuit and wrote, “Apparently, Baker McKenzie’s response to multiple sexual assault claims is a master class to the firm of ‘what not to do.’ Sweeping this under the rug will not make it go away.”
According to the lawsuit, at least 106 social media posts by Radford are “filled with lies, threats, and otherwise harassing statements” against Bellan and Baker & McKenzie.
During her employment, Radford never made any claims about sexual assault or harassment about anyone at Baker, the suit says. Additionally, it states that Bellan never sexually assaulted Radford or anyone else and never made any offers to Radford to silence allegations of sexual assault. His relationship with Radford was “strictly professional,” the suit says.
“We are confident that our lawsuit will establish there is no merit to Ms. Radford’s allegations,” a Baker & McKenzie spokesperson said in a statement. “We’ve attempted to pursue a dialogue to try to address her purported concerns, but she has not engaged with these efforts. The firm takes all allegations of harassment very seriously and is committed to providing a safe and inclusive working environment for all of our people.”
Radford had listed questions sent to her by lawyers for Baker & McKenzie on LinkedIn and described efforts to reach her as “intimidation tactics.”
According to the lawsuit, Baker & McKenzie discovered more than 100 charges on Radford’s law firm credit card that appeared to be for personal purchases or for which she failed to provide receipts to verify a business expense.
She allegedly purchased clothing, first-class airplane tickets, food deliveries and rides on Lyft without authorization. The suit lists examples that include charges of $712 at Lululemon, $233 at H&M, $260 at Sephora, and $508 for Apple AirPods Max from Amazon.
Additionally, the updated lawsuit includes a new allegation that Bellan sought a peace order in Maryland on Sept. 21, resulting in a temporary order requiring Radford to refrain from harassment and to stay away from Bellan’s residence and Baker & McKenzie offices. A decision on a final peace order was postponed after Radford did not show up for a Sept. 29 hearing, according to the complaint.
Lawsuit exhibits reproduced a LinkedIn post in which Radford posted the handwritten temporary order and wrote, “I cannot read majority of the peace order (because it is illegible), but it is interesting that Maurice Bellan did not request that I avoid his home, only his office.”
The suit labels the statement “an implicit threat.”
The exhibits also reproduced a text message in which Radford allegedly told Bellan on Sept. 21, “Every single day until you pay for what you did.” The message was cited in the peace order application.
The suit says the message “reaffirms Ms. Radford’s malicious intent to continue to defame, threaten and harass Mr. Bellan.”
In another LinkedIn post about the peace order, Radford wrote, “The truth is not harassment.”
The law firm and Bellan not only allege defamation, but also tortious interference with business relationships, based on allegations that some clients no longer want to do business with Bellan or the firm because of Radford’s statements. The law firm also includes a conversion count based on Radford’s alleged refusal to return her laptop and power cord.
Bellan also alleges intentional infliction of emotional distress and portrayal in a false light in the new complaint.
The first lawsuit was signed by lawyers with Jackson Lewis. The ABA Journal was unable to find a record of it with the District of Columbia Superior Court. The second lawsuit was additionally signed by lawyers with a second law firm, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius.
Publications with coverage of the initial lawsuit include Bloomberg Law, Law.com, Law360 and Above the Law.
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