A jury in New York awarded $1.68 billion in damages on Wednesday to 40 women who accused filmmaker James Toback of sexual misconduct over a 35-year period, attorneys for the plaintiffs announced. This ruling comes as a result of a lawsuit initiated in Manhattan in 2022, following the introduction of a one-year window in New York that allowed survivors of sexual assault to file lawsuits regardless of how long ago the incidents occurred.
The decision is one of the largest jury awards since the rise of the #MeToo movement and stands among the most significant in New York history, according to attorney Brad Beckworth of Nix Patterson LLP. “This verdict will send a strong message to those in power who fail to treat women with respect,” Beckworth asserted.
Though the court had yet to release official documentation regarding the verdict as of Wednesday evening, Beckworth detailed that the jury awarded $280 million in compensatory damages alongside $1.4 billion in punitive damages. “This verdict is about justice,” he stated. “It’s about reclaiming power from abusers and their enablers and restoring it to those who have been silenced.”
The allegations against Toback extend from 1979 until 2014, with accounts surfacing publicly in late 2017 as the #MeToo movement gained momentum. Toback, a former Oscar nominee for writing the 1991 film “Bugsy,” has faced numerous accusations of sexual misconduct, first reported by the Los Angeles Times.
In 2018, Los Angeles prosecutors reviewed five cases against him but determined that the statutes of limitations had expired, leading them not to pursue criminal charges. Subsequently, plaintiffs filed their lawsuit in New York soon after the state’s Adult Survivors Act took effect. The lawsuit outlines a pattern in which Toback allegedly lured young women with false promises of roles in his films before subjecting them to sexual acts, intimidation, and psychological manipulation.
Mary Monahan, a leading plaintiff in the case, described the jury’s decision as a form of “validation” for her and the other women involved. “For too long, I lived with this trauma in silence, and today a jury took a stand for us,” she shared. “This verdict is larger than just a number; it is a clear declaration that we are not disposable and our stories are real.”
James Toback, now 80, has consistently denied any wrongdoing, maintaining that his interactions with the plaintiffs were consensual. He has also contended that the New York law extending the statute of limitations infringes on his constitutional rights. A request for comment sent to Toback was not immediately returned.
Earlier this year, a judge entered a default judgment against Toback after he failed to appear in court. A trial had been scheduled last month solely to determine the damages owed to the plaintiffs, culminating in the jury’s recent substantial award.
This case not only highlights the ongoing struggles of survivors seeking justice but also affirms a societal shift towards accountability in instances of sexual misconduct and abusive behavior in powerful circles.
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