In the Media

We recently obtained a $25 million judgment on behalf of a woman who was sexually abused by her brother decades earlier under New York’s Child Victim’s Act. Subsequently, in defending against the defendant’s efforts to nullify the judgment in bankruptcy court, the firm achieved a landmark victory when the Bankruptcy Court held that the “domestic violence” exception to the bankruptcy stay applied to sexual violence that occurred years earlier. 

Wang Hecker LLP, with co-counsel the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation, represents the Columbia University chapter of the American Association of University Professors (“Columbia-AAUP”), who are defendants in the lawsuit Doe v. Alwan. During student protests at Columbia in April 2024, Columbia-AAUP made statements supporting the right of students to protest and criticizing the university’s punitive response to the protests. Two months later, five current and former Columbia students sued Columbia-AAUP for making those and similar statements.  Wang Hecker LLP and the ACLU filed a motion to dismiss under New York’s “anti-SLAPP” statute, arguing that the case is a “Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation,” or “SLAPP,” that weaponizes our legal system and seeks to punish protected speech by making meritless legal claims. More information about the case is available in this blog post.

Following the presidential election, Mariann Wang and other attorneys who represent survivors of sexual assault and has represented Trump accusers spoke to The Guardian about the potential impact of his election on the survivor community.

Stacey Williams came forward to describe being groped by Donald Trump in front of Jeffrey Epstein. The firm is representing her in this regard.

We successfully obtained a $25 million judgment on behalf of our client who was sexually abused by her brother when she was a child and pursued justice under New York’s Child Victims Act.

With Allred Maroko Goldberg, we represent a woman who has asserted claims against Sean Combs and others based on allegations of sexual assault that was filmed.  

Mariann Wang discussed why and how laws imposing stringent deadlines on those who have suffered sexual abuse and assault are unfair and need changing. Watch the interview or read the transcript.

The deadline for filing claims for sexual assault that are revived by New York’s Adult Survivors Act was November 23, 2023. Mariann Wang was interviewed on NPR’s All Things Considered to discuss the closing of the ASA window and its impact.

The firm has successfully settled enforcement litigation regarding the breach of a landmark settlement agreement. In 2021, the firm obtained $2.9 million in damages on behalf of a non-profit civil rights organization in a case alleging widespread violation of the accessibility requirements of the Fair Housing Act at the American Copper Buildings, a pair of luxury residential rental towers in Manhattan. The agreement required extensive remediation of the barriers to access, and when the owners failed to complete the mediation by the deadline, the firm brought another lawsuit, which settled for an additional $800,000 in damages.

For another six months, survivors of sexual assault who were 18 years old or older at the time of the assault may file claims under New York’s Adult Survivors Act. The window, in which previously stale claims for sexual assault may be revived, opened on November 24, 2022, and will close on November 23, 2023. Mariann Wang was interviewed as part of an Inside City Hall segment discussing the ASA window and the legislation’s critical role in permitting survivors to pursue long overdue justice.