Robert De Niro and his former assistant, Graham Chase Robinson, faced a dramatic courtroom showdown.

• Robinson is currently suing De Niro for $12 million in gender discrimination, alleging physical contact, verbal harassment, and vulgar comments.
• In addition, De Niro has filed a lawsuit against Robinson for misusing the corporate card and transferring frequent-flier miles to her account.
• During his testimony, De Niro defended himself against allegations of workplace misconduct while also admitting to using insults such as “spoiled brat” or “bitch.”

In a highly charged moment, Robert De Niro, the renowned actor, unleashed his fury on his ex-assistant, Graham Chase Robinson, who is suing him for alleged mistreatment.

“Shame on you, Chase Robinson!” shouted De Niro across the crowded Manhattan federal courtroom.

This outburst occurred when Robinson’s lawyer questioned De Niro about an incident in which he may have audibly urinated while on a phone call with his executive assistant.

“I can’t believe we’re here for this. Give me a break!” De Niro exclaimed, according to Deadline. He also emphasized that he never mistreats his employees.

The civil trial in New York centers around Robinson’s 11-year tenure as De Niro’s assistant, with two lawsuits being examined by a jury of eight. In a $12 million lawsuit alleging gender discrimination, Robinson claims that De Niro treated her as more than just an assistant, subjecting her to physical contact, verbal harassment, and vulgar comments.

She resigned in 2019 following a dispute with De Niro’s girlfriend, Tiffany Chen. The lawsuit further alleges that De Niro refused to provide a reference for Robinson due to the clashes with Chen.

In addition to Robinson’s lawsuit, De Niro and his company, Canal Productions, she filed a lawsuit accusing her of improperly using a corporate card for personal expenses, as well as transferring a significant amount of frequent-flier miles to her account after leaving her position.

Both De Niro and Robinson vehemently deny the accusations brought against them.

As the trial’s first witness, De Niro faced extensive questioning about his workplace practices, including allegations of Robinson being constantly on-call.

De Niro stated that he only contacted Robinson during appropriate hours and that her responsibilities included handling his travel arrangements, managing gifts, and organizing schedules.

He admitted that Robinson had once been his emergency contact, a role not even held by his ex-wife during their marriage.

“I asked her to do what was reasonable within the scope of her job,” De Niro explained.

He regarded Robinson as a dependable and valuable employee until she abruptly resigned amidst an internal investigation into her spending.

De Niro adamantly dismissed Robinson’s allegations, deeming them “nonsense.”

However, he did admit to occasionally calling her names like “spoiled brat” or “bitch” over the years. Despite this, he maintained that he never treated her abusively.

In the courtroom, De Niro challenged the implications of Robinson’s lawyer, Andrew Macurdy, insisting that there was never any inappropriate behavior or disrespect towards his former assistant.

“She’s making it seem like she was on her knees, scrubbing the floor in front of the building,” De Niro stated.

“There was never any lewdness, disrespect, or strange behavior like you suggested.”