Michael Egan, the man who is (was?) suing Bryan Singer and other Hollywood executives for sexual abuse, has been dropped by his lawyer after not agreeing to an arranged $100,000 settlement.
BuzzFeed got their hands on documents indicating that a settlement had been agreed upon in June by Singer, his lawyer and Egan’s lawyer Jeff Herman. It was set to go into effect after Egan’s lawsuits against Singer in Hawaii and California were dismissed.
According to Singer’s lawyer, the settlement was offered up by Herman:
“Egan is the one who approached us,” he said. Because the sum amounted to significantly less than the millions it would likely have taken to fight the case, Martin Singer said, “from a business perspective we said we would consider” the settlement offer.
But Egan wouldn’t go for it. “This exact kind of take-it-and-shut-up deal is why I decided to stand up in the first place,” he told BuzzFeed. “Being silenced goes completely against what I believe in and offers no protection for other vulnerable children.”
In a statement, Herman confirmed that he was “withdrawing from representing Mr. Egan in all his cases” but wouldn’t comment on the other lawsuits he’s filed for clients against other executives, several of which have been thrown out (these cases are a mess and very hard to follow). Earlier this week, a California court dismissed the lawsuit filed by a British actor also represented by Herman against Singer, using language that BuzzFeed points out is “nearly identical” to that which was agreed upon in the terminated Egan settlement.
Singer’s lawyer says they intend to sue Egan.
Images via 20th Century Fox, Alan Markfield and AP