• by Steve McClellan  @mp_mcclellan, July 2, 2018

Crispin Porter + Bogusky and MDC Partners have been slapped with a $20-plus million defamation and breach of contract suit by a former top creative executive at the agency, Ralph Watson, after he was terminated earlier this year in the wake of anonymous sex misconduct allegations about him.

The accusations appeared on the social-media site of Diet Madison Avenue. 

The suit also named MDC general counsel Mitchell Gendell and CP+B CFO Dusty Nelson, as well as “Does 1 through 10, inclusive” that Watson said he would identify at a later time. 

Watson also sued for age discrimination, civil conspiracy, intentional interference with contract and prospective economic relations, wrongful discharge and intentional infliction of emotional distress. 

In the complaint, filed June 29, Watson, who was hired as Chief Creative Officer for CP+B’s Boulder office in 2014, noted that on January 19, the anonymous collective known as Diet Madison Avenue published via Instagram Stories the following:

“Ralph Watson. The women that you targeted & groomed (like all predators do), because they were young & just starting out their careers … the women that you assumed would stay quiet are stronger than you ever gave them credit for. And their voices have created a timeline. Going back years. Corroborated stories. Spanning across multiple agencies. And even Continents.” 

Watson claims in the suit that he immediately reached out to CP+B human resources director Holly Gregg “to determine what the source of the false rumors could be.” He claims that he was assured the agency had received no “credible complaints” and no evidence of sexual harassment against him at that time. 

The DMA posting created an uproar at the agency, which held a town meeting January 25 where per the suit, agency management reiterated what they had earlier told Watson privately. It would “not fire anyone over rumors.” 

Shortly after the town hall meeting, DMA posted another message accusing CP+B of a “cover-up” for not dismissing Watson. But on Feb.2, the suit alleges, Watson was terminated for cause “as a direct result of Diet Madison Avenue’s false statements, pressure and interference.” 

MDC and the agency have more than a month to respond to the suit, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for Colorado. But the firms did issue a joint statement: 

“CP+B stands by its decision to terminate Mr. Watson’s employment in February 2018. MDC Partners and CP+B intend to vigorously defend themselves and their employees against the litigation commenced on June 29, 2018 by Mr. Watson.” 

Several weeks ago, Watson filed a defamation suit against Diet Madison Avenue.