Former Milwaukee Bucks co-owner Marc Lasry was hit by a countersuit seeking $100 million on Thursday from an ex-employee who maintains the billionaire subjected her to years of sexual harassment and a smear campaign.
Gina Strum, an attorney and executive, filed the suit in New York Supreme Court, with Lasry’s Avenue Capital Group and its co-founder, Sonia Gardner (Lasry’s sister), also named as defendants.
Strum maintains that “Lasry exploited his position as CEO of Avenue Capital to manipulate, harass, and retaliate against Strum after she refused his advances and reported misconduct.”
The countersuit states that “Lasry engaged in a pattern of grooming and predatory behavior, using his authority, personal disclosures, and emotional manipulation to erode professional boundaries and cultivate inappropriate dependence. Strum asserts claims for, among others, sexual harassment, sexual assault, defamation, retaliation, breach of fiduciary duty, and fraud.”
In October, Lasry, Avenue Capital and Gardner sued Strum, accusing her of using harassment and blackmail in an attempt to gain $50 million. Strum denied the allegations.
An Avenue Capital spokesperson told Business Insider: “Ms. Strum’s allegations are completely false and represent her further attempt to malign the reputations of Mr. Lasry, Ms. Gardner, and Avenue for financial gain.”
Richard Roth, Strum’s attorney and managing partner of The Roth Law Firm, said Thursday in a statement, “The complaint describes a disturbing pattern of physical and emotional misconduct. It asserts that Mr. Lasry exploited years of personal disclosures about his wife and daughters to foster an inappropriate emotional attachment, blurring professional boundaries and positioning Ms. Strum as an emotional surrogate.
“According to the complaint, this manipulation escalated into unwanted touching and ultimately a quid pro quo sexual harassment dynamic — where Ms. Strum’s professional opportunities and financial future were conditioned on tolerating Lasry’s personal demands, misconduct, and predatory behavior. The complaint states that Ms. Strum reasonably believed that accepting his pressure to join Avenue internally would inevitably require her to submit to physical sexual demands.”
Lasry, 65, was part of the Bucks’ ownership group from 2014-2023. Earlier this week, Sportico reported that Lasry and Pro Football Hall of Famer Michael Strahan are working to purchase a stake in the New York Giants.
