Skip to content Skip to search

Republish This Story

* Please read before republishing *

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free under an Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives Creative Commons license as long as you follow our republishing guidelines, which require that you credit The 19th and retain our pixel. See our full guidelines for more information.

To republish, simply copy the HTML at right, which includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to The 19th. Have questions? Please email [email protected].

— The Editors

Loading...

Modal Gallery

/

Menu

  • Our Mission
  • Our Team
  • Latest Stories
  • Search
  • Upcoming Events
  • Contact Us
  • Newsletter
  • Donate
  • Work With Us
  • Fellowships
    • From the Collection

      Changing Child Care

      Illustration of a woman feeding a baby a bottle
      • The full PUMP Act is now in effect. Here’s what it does for lactating parents.

        Chabeli Carrazana · April 28
      • 1 in 4 parents report being fired for work interruptions due to child care breakdowns

        Chabeli Carrazana · February 2
      • Washington, D.C., offers financial relief to local child care workers

        Orion Rummler · September 20
    • From the Collection

      Next-Gen GOP

      Illustration of a woman riding an elephant
      • Mayra Flores’ victory set a record for women in Congress. It also reflects the growing visibility of Republican Latinas

        Candice Norwood · June 21
      • A banner year for Republican women

        Amanda Becker · November 11
      • Republican women could double representation in the U.S. House

        Amanda Becker · November 4
    • From the Collection

      On The Rise

      Illustration of three women marching
      • This Delaware candidate could be the first transgender member of Congress

        Orion Rummler · June 26
      • Can Cheri Beasley build a winning coalition in North Carolina?

        Candice Norwood · October 11
      • Los Angeles has never elected a woman mayor. Karen Bass hopes to change that.

        Nadra Nittle · September 8
    • From the Collection

      Pandemic Within a Pandemic

      Illustration of four people marching for Black Lives Matter with coronavirus as the backdrop
      • Some LGBTQ+ people worry that the COVID-19 vaccine will affect HIV medication. It won’t.

        Orion Rummler · November 23
      • Why are more men dying from COVID? It’s a complicated story of nature vs. nurture, researchers say

        Mariel Padilla · September 22
      • Few incarcerated women were released during COVID. The ones who remain have struggled.

        Candice Norwood · August 17
    • From the Collection

      Portraits of a Pandemic

      Illustration of a woman wearing a mask and holding up the coronavirus
      • For family caregivers, COVID is a mental health crisis in the making

        Shefali Luthra · October 8
      • A new database tracks COVID-19’s effects on sex and gender

        Shefali Luthra · September 15
      • Pregnant in a pandemic: The 'perfect storm for a crisis'

        Shefali Luthra · August 25
    • From the Collection

      The 19th Explains

      People walking from many articles to one article where they can get the context they need on an issue.
      • The 19th Explains: What are 'late-term abortions' — and why are politicians talking about them? 

        Mel Leonor Barclay, Shefali Luthra · August 21
      • The 19th Explains: Why child marriage is still legal in 80% of U.S. states

        Mariel Padilla · July 5
      • The 19th Explains: The Supreme Court’s decision in the LGBTQ+ 303 Creative case

        Kate Sosin · June 30
    • From the Collection

      The Electability Myth

      Illustration of three women speaking at podiums
      • Mayra Flores’ victory set a record for women in Congress. It also reflects the growing visibility of Republican Latinas

        Candice Norwood · June 21
      • Stepping in after tragedy: How political wives became widow lawmakers

        Mariel Padilla · May 24
      • Do term limits help women candidates? New York could be a new testing ground

        Barbara Rodriguez · January 11
    • From the Collection

      The Impact of Aging

      A number of older people walking down a path of information.
      • From ballroom dancing to bloodshed, the older AAPI community grapples with gun control

        Nadra Nittle, Mariel Padilla · January 27
      • 'I'm planning on working until the day I die': Older women voters are worried about the future

        Mariel Padilla · June 3
      • Climate change is forcing care workers to act as first responders

        Jessica Kutz · May 31
    • From the Collection

      The State of Our Nation

      • States passing abortion bans reflect what only a small minority of their constituents actually want

        Jasmine Mithani · October 24
    • From the Collection

      Voting Rights

      A series of hands reaching for ballots.
      • Voting organizers are breathing ‘a deep sigh of relief’ over Supreme Court rulings on elections — for now

        Barbara Rodriguez · July 6
      • Ranked-choice voting is gaining momentum. So are efforts to stop it.

        Barbara Rodriguez · April 24
      • Connecticut voters approved early voting. Here’s how their new secretary of state wants to make it happen.

        Barbara Rodriguez · February 13

    View all collections

  • Explore by Topic

    • 19th Polling
    • Abortion
    • Business & Economy
    • Caregiving
    • Coronavirus
    • Education
    • Election 2020
    • Election 2022
    • Election 2024
    • Environment & Climate
    • Health
    • Immigration
    • Inside The 19th
    • Justice
    • LGBTQ+
    • Military
    • Politics
    • Press Release
    • Race
    • Sports
    • Technology

    View All Topics

Home
  • Our Mission
  • Our Team
  • Latest Stories
  • Search
  • Upcoming Events
  • Contact Us
  • Newsletter
  • Donate
  • Work With Us
  • Fellowships

We’re an independent, nonprofit newsroom reporting on gender, politics and policy. Read our story.

The 19th News(letter)

News that represents you, in your inbox every weekday.

You have been subscribed!

Please complete the following CAPTCHA to be confirmed. If you have any difficulty, contact [email protected] for help.

Submitting...

Uh-oh! Something went wrong. Please email [email protected] to subscribe.

Become a member

The 19th thanks our sponsors. Become one.

In addition to her involvement with the harassment scandal in New York, Roberta Kaplan is representing a former top aide to Gov. Andrew Cuomo. (Photo by Roy Rochlin/Getty Images)

Justice

Time’s Up leader resigns over involvement in Cuomo sexual harassment response

Roberta Kaplan helped found the Time’s Up Legal Defense Fund. Now, some survivors say the organization is failing them.

Amanda Becker

Washington Correspondent

Amanda Becker portrait

Published

2021-08-09 11:21
11:21
August 9, 2021
am

Updated

2021-08-09 17:39:24.000000
America/New_York

Share

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Email

This article has been updated.

Roberta Kaplan, who chairs the Time’s Up board and in 2017 co-founded the Time’s Up Legal Defense Fund to support survivors of sexual harassment and assault, resigned from the organization on Monday as criticism mounted over her role advising New York’s embattled governor, Andrew Cuomo, and his staff in their effort to discredit one of his accusers. 

An independent New York attorney general report released last week found that Cuomo, a Democrat, sexually harassed 11 women and retaliated against at least one for telling her story. The report states that Kaplan reviewed the draft of a letter disparaging the accuser and suggested changes. 

The 19th thanks our sponsors. Become one.

“We hold ourselves accountable. The events of the last week have made it clear that our process should be evaluated and we intend to do just that,” the Time’s Up board and president Tina Tchen said in a statement.

Time’s Up and the Time’s Up Legal Defense Fund are separate but related entities. Kaplan was the board chair of Time’s Up and a co-founder of its legal defense fund, which is housed at the National Women’s Law Center.

“We are counting on our sisters and allies not to lose sight of the broader work and let a man’s treachery be overshadowed in any way. We do not ask for a pass, we ask for perspective,” the statement read. 

The newsletter for the new electorate, delivered to your inbox every other week

You have been subscribed!

Please complete the following CAPTCHA to be confirmed. If you have any difficulty, contact [email protected] for help.

Submitting…

Uh-oh! Something went wrong. Please email [email protected] to subscribe.

Kaplan, via her law firm Kaplan Hecker & Fink, is representing a former top Cuomo aide, Melissa DeRosa, who resigned Sunday night. DeRosa played an integral role in Cuomo’s attempts to counter sexual harassment allegations against him, including from a former staffer, Lindsey Boylan, who in December 2020 publicly accused the governor. 

The report found that current and former Cuomo aides  “engaged in a flurry of communication” to protect the governor, including leaking Boylan’s private personnel file to the media and drafting a letter or op-ed that impugned her credibility. DeRosa testified that Kaplan read the letter and suggested changes that did not disparage Boylan. DeRosa also testified that Kaplan read a copy of the letter to Tchen. Tchen told the Washington Post last week that she did not remember the particulars of their conversation, but “you cannot make any  attempt to attack or discredit a person who has come forward with allegations.” Both she and Kaplan have since called for Cuomo’s resignation.

In a resignation letter obtained by the New York Times, Kaplan said that she continues to represent DeRosa. “As a result, I cannot offer the degree of transparency about my firm’s matters now being demanded, as that would be contrary to my responsibilities as a lawyer,” Kaplan wrote. “I therefore reluctantly come to the conclusion that an active law practice is no longer compatible with serving on the Board at Time’s Up at this time and I hereby resign.”

Kaplan did not respond to an email seeking comment on her resignation. 

In an open letter on Monday to Time’s Up leaders, a group of nearly 50 individuals, including some of the organization’s former staff members and clients of the Times Up Legal Defense Fund, said they “believe TIME’S UP is failing the survivor community.” Some of them signed by name and others chose to identify by descriptions.

They suggested eight steps Time’s Up could take to repair harm done, including conducting a full inquiry of the extent to which the organization’s leaders and figureheads have assisted or advised potential perpetrators of sexual harassment and assault, as well as publishing a detailed breakdown of the groups’ finances.

“TIME’S UP has abandoned the very people it was supposed to champion,” the group wrote.

Share

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Email

The 19th News(letter)

News that represents you, in your inbox every weekday.

You have been subscribed!

Please complete the following CAPTCHA to be confirmed. If you have any difficulty, contact [email protected] for help.

Submitting...

Uh-oh! Something went wrong. Please email [email protected] to subscribe.

Become a member

Up Next

Business & Economy

The infrastructure bill promises construction work. One amendment could open that up to more women.

A proposed amendment would give women and people of color more access to skilled trades and the wages they bring.

Read the Story

The 19th
The 19th is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Our stories are free to republish in accordance with these guidelines.

  • Donate
  • Newsletter
  • Events
  • Search
  • Jobs
  • Fellowships
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Community Guidelines
  • Membership
  • Membership FAQ
  • Ways to Give
  • Sponsorship
  • Privacy
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram