Suit claims paralegal axed 24 minutes after complaining about attorney

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A paralegal in a recently filed employment discrimination suit says she was fired from the Boston office of a national personal injury firm less than 30 minutes after she complained to firm leaders and HR about her supervising attorney’s behavior.

Au-Lionne N. Agatako is suing Morgan & Morgan in U.S. District Court in Boston, asserting claims of Title VII retaliation, sex discrimination and hostile work environment.

The complaint alleges that, at approximately 2:12 p.m. on March 5, she emailed a formal complaint to Garrett D. Lee, co-managing partner of Morgan & Morgan’s Boston office, Morgan lawyers Dillon Brozyna and Ryan D. Lang, and the firm’s regional human resources manager, D’Lynn Larson. The complaint asserted Agatako had been subjected to retaliation by Nicholas A. Brown.

Attached to the plaintiff’s email was a five-page memo that detailed alleged instances of demeaning and inappropriate conduct on Brown’s part that ran afoul of Title VII and the anti-discrimination provisions of Morgan & Morgan’s employee handbook.

At 2:36 p.m. that same day, Agatako allegedly received an email from Larson notifying her that she was being terminated immediately.

“We think the timing speaks for itself,” says Agatako’s attorney, Joseph P. Resnek of Chelsea.

In asserting her claim for Title VII retaliation, the plaintiff alleges that she engaged in protected activity by “reporting her supervisor for hostility, demeaning conduct, and sexual harassment in the workplace” and that her termination immediately thereafter was causally connected to her protected activity.

With regard to her claims for sex discrimination and hostile work environment, the plaintiff alleges she was subjected to unwelcome conduct based on her sex and that that conduct “was severe or pervasive and made her extremely uncomfortable.”

A spokesperson for the firm issued a statement denying any wrongdoing.

“Morgan & Morgan is committed to creating a work environment that is free of discrimination and harassment,” the statement reads. “We believe these allegations are unfounded and will vigorously defend against them.”

According to the suit, Morgan & Morgan hired Agatako as a litigation paralegal in June 2025. While working on a team led by Brown, Agatako alleges several instances in which Brown engaged in “repeated, unwelcome, and gendered conduct.”

In early January, she alleges that, as she sat taking notes in Brown’s office, he told her to “put your shoulders back,” which she considered to be “an inappropriate and unwelcome comment directed at her physical appearance and posture.”

Also in January, she claims, Brown asked her to come closer to view his computer screen and, when she complied, referred to her as “honey.” She alleges that, too, was unwelcome and inappropriate, causing her “to retreat and feel extremely uncomfortable.”

In another instance, the plaintiff alleges that Brown told her during a Zoom call to turn on her camera, saying in a manner that made her feel uncomfortable, “I want to see your face.”

“It was a whole range of conduct,” Resnek says of Brown’s behavior. “Overall, if I were to characterize [Brown’s conduct,] it was extremely inappropriate behavior in terms of sexual conduct, and [if certain behavior] couldn’t be characterized as sexual, it was certainly totally inappropriate. We expect the jury to be able to parse it out.”

The plaintiff claims that, in late January, she was placed on “on a pretextual Performance Improvement Plan consisting of six highly technical, deadline-driven objectives, along with newly imposed roles and responsibilities.”

According to the plaintiff, she was unfairly placed on the PIP because she had been wrongfully blamed for being late in preparing a mediation memorandum that she, in fact, never submitted and was never assigned to draft in the first instance.

Agatako’s complaint claims that, during the two months leading up to her termination, Brown failed to help her complete the PIP and, in fact, proved to be a hindrance.

“Plaintiff repeatedly sought guidance from Brown on how to improve her performance,” the complaint states. “Brown consistently responded with statements such as ‘you need to show me,’ and, when pressed for clarification, would only say ‘you need to figure it out.’ These comments were vague, unhelpful, and, in context, carried an inappropriate and uncomfortable subtext.”

The plaintiff is seeking punitive damages and compensatory damages for lost wages and benefits, emotional distress, reputational harm, and loss of career advancement.

“This defendant — perhaps more than any other defendant I could think of — advertises its wealth,” Resnek says of his client’s claim for punitives. “There are billboards in the city where Ms. Agatako lives that brag about how much money they make and how large the firm is. ‘Size Matters’ they say. Photos of those billboards suddenly become relevant in federal court.”

Defense counsel had not entered an appearance as of press time.