Why Alina Habba Was Once Sued By A Former Employee
Like her most famous client, Donald Trump's attorney, Alina Habba, is no stranger to legal troubles. Habba faced serious accusations from a former employee at Trump's golf club, but that's not all. In July 2022, former legal secretary Na'Syia Drayton filed a lawsuit against Habba and her partner Michael Madaio, after working for their firm Habba Madaio & Associates. Drayton and Habba had a prior working relationship at a different law firm where Drayton was let go during the COVID-19 pandemic. Habba gave Drayton a job at her new firm, and that's when the situation allegedly went south.
The Daily Beast received exclusive information about the lawsuit from an anonymous insider. According to the report, Drayton — who had been the only African American employee at the office — alleged that Habba and Madaio would say the N-word while singing along to rap music in the office. According to Above the Law, Habba and Madaio played the music to get ready and energized before going into court. The Daily Beast said the lawsuit mentioned an instance from January 26, when they "played, and loudly sung, several songs in the office with sexually explicit lyrics" that in Drayton's eyes were "both racially offensive and sexually inappropriate within the office setting." Drayton "felt demeaned and violated" by Habba saying the N-word, and the sexual content of the songs caused discomfort as well.
Another major detail of the lawsuit was an outburst Habba had regarding the attorney general of New York.
Habba allegedly called Letitia James a racial slur
According to The Daily Beast, after one of Donald Trump's lawsuits led to the former president facing a $110,000 fine, Alina Habba was incredibly angry with New York Attorney General Letitia James. Habba allegedly yelled, "I hate that Black b***h!" in the office. In another incident of racist behavior via a separate report from The Daily Beast, Habba allegedly told Na'Syia Drayton "you people like fried chicken" at a firm lunch. When Habba could tell something was off with Drayton — who had begun having panic attacks and separating herself from other employees — Habba set a meeting with the legal secretary. Drayton didn't say what was bothering her during the meeting with Habba, but later, she sent an email voicing her discomfort and hoping to fix things.
Habba reacted badly and got angry, calling Drayton and reportedly saying, "I am a f***ing minority myself ... I'm not white. I used to be bullied because I am Arab ... everybody listens to Kanye West — and, I'm not allowed to?" Drayton quit shortly after the call.
When Habba was interviewed about the suit, she denied the allegations. She told The Daily Beast, "Na'Syia is someone we love and care about and have for years. Na'Syia had never made a single complaint to anyone until she had decided to quit and ask for an exorbitant amount of money in return. I am disappointed by this lawsuit and the allegations which are simply not true."
The lawsuit against Alina Habba never went to court
Na'Syia Drayton filed her lawsuit against Alina Habba and Michael Madaio in July 2022. Drayton's attorney, Jacqueline Tillmann, commended Drayton for her bravery in speaking up and told The Daily Beast at the time, "My client let a lot of things go. But when the Letitia James comment was made, then the music with supervisors singing those lyrics ... it doesn't feel good as an employee." She also added how Habba's enjoyment of rap music shouldn't happen during work hours.
That September, the case was settled out of court. Details on the settlement were sparse due to a non-disparagement agreement. However, an insider for The Daily Beast claimed the settlement happened because of audio recordings from the office. No further details about those recordings were shared.
After the settlement, Tillmann gave a simple explanation: "We reached a resolution, but I cannot comment on the details." Drayton didn't share any comments for the outlet. Despite quickly settling the lawsuit out of court, speculation over Habba's future as Trump's attorney has been rife. In early 2024, she was replaced as counsel heading into the former president's civil fraud case in Manhattan.