In recently filed federal lawsuit in Manhattan, former chief operating officer of a legal technology company alleges wrongful termination following her bid to exercise stock options worth over $1 million. The suit also details repeated instances of sexual harassment during her tenure.
The plaintiff, Silvia Diaz-Roa, brought the suit against both Hermes Law, a law firm based in Texas, as well as ClaimDeck, a litigation management system offering services to insurers and insurance-defense firms which originated from Hermes Law. Additional defendants mentioned in the case include Dwayne Hermes, serving as founder and CEO for both the law firm and company, and Andrea Hermes, another co-founder of the company and legal compliance specialist at Hermes Law.
An email sent to Dwayne Hermes requesting a response to the allegations has yet to receive a reply, and an answer to the pending lawsuit has also not yet been filed by the defendants.
The details of Diaz-Roa’s complaint, accessible here, reveal that she originally joined the firm as an intern, moving up the ranks to serve as senior project manager and subsequently director of innovation.
According to Diaz-Roa, she and Dwayne Hermes developed the concept for ClaimDeck in 2019, launching the company a year later. Beginning in 2021, Diaz-Roa alleges that she was a key initiator for ClaimDeck’s growth, whilst holding positions at both the law firm and the company. Within ClaimDeck, she took up the roles of head of product and chief operating officer.
The lawsuit alleges that Diaz-Roa was promised a compensation package of options to purchase 58,825 shares of ClaimDeck stock, amounting to around 10% of the company’s total shares, in December 2020. Diaz-Roa claims that three years later, after the options had fully vested and fair market value exceeded $1 million, she expressed an intent to exercise her options to Dwayne Hermes, ClaimDeck’s accountants, and its attorney. Weeks after revealing her decision, Diaz-Roa alleges she was terminated without cause – an action she asserts was designed to rob her of rightfully earned compensation.
The complaint further states Diaz-Roa was subject to consistent sexual harassment throughout her employment. Both Andrea and Dwayne Hermes allegedly encouraged her to use her physical appearance to attract customers, and on several occasions, suggested she engage in romantic relationships with industry individuals for professional advantage. The complaint reads, “Dwayne Hermes especially fixated on Diaz-Roa’s appearance, humiliatingly directing her to ‘fix’ her makeup and accusing her of looking ‘tired’ in front of other ClaimDeck and Hermes Law employees.”
As a result of these allegations, Diaz-Roa’s complaint outlines causes of action for sexual harassment, breach of contract, deprivation of earned compensation, and other related claims and seeks appropriate damages.
For the original coverage and more details, see the full article here.