Latest news with #LevyEmploymentLaw
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Fired NY Philharmonic trumpeter sues for $25M, says romantic fling from 16 years ago was consensual
A New York Philharmonic trumpeter who claims he was wrongly canned is suing the famed orchestra for $25 million, court papers show. Matthew Muckey, third trumpet with the Philharmonic, sued in March claiming he was wrongly fired over a romantic fling he'd had 16 years prior in which his ex-lover confirmed her consent in writing and even complimented him on his performance in the sack. Now Muckey, 40, is seeking a big payout from the Philharmonic and the law firm whose investigation allegedly led to his termination, according to newly-filed legal papers. The firm, Levy Employment Law, allegedly failed to let Muckey see any accusations from the woman he slept with in 2008, and apparently ignored written messages she'd sent to Muckey after their dalliance, he alleged in the litigation. 'Awwww you're really the best thanks for everything, yes, even the sex,' she allegedly wrote to him via Facebook Messenger after their 2008 encounter. 'It was pretty good.' The pair had sex twice, according to messages included in the lawsuit. 'I did consent,' she wrote, according to court docs. Muckey was fired in October, after the Philharmonic, which apparently had no current complaints against him, surveyed its musicians asking about Muckey by name. 'It did not matter to the Philharmonic that none of the musicians surveyed alleged that Mr. Muckey had engaged in any acts of sexual harassment, violence and/or abuse,' he said in court papers. The Philharmonic 'attempted to justify the disciplinary actions it took against Mr. Muckey as being based upon a supposed significant number of orchestra members not wanting to work with him and, therefore, supporting both the Suspension and the Dismissal.' The Philharmonic declined comment. The Levy firm did not respond to a message seeking comment.
Yahoo
22-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
NY Philharmonic trumpeter fired for sexual misconduct says he has proof that accuser lied
A woman who had fling with a New York Philharmonic trumpet player allegedly changed her tune about their tryst — and got him booted from the prestigious orchestra, he claimed in a lawsuit. Matthew Muckey, third trumpet with the Philharmonic, was fired in October after his unnamed ex-lover apparently claimed they had sex when she was too drunk to consent. But Muckey, 40, insists in a Manhattan Supreme Court lawsuit that she knew what she was doing during their relationship and even raved about his performance. 'Awwww you're really the best thanks for everything, yes, even the sex,' she allegedly wrote to him via Facebook Messenger after their 2008 encounter. 'It was pretty good.' But 16 years later questions arose about Muckey's relationship with the woman, identified in court papers only as C.S. The Philharmonic hired Levy Employment Law to investigate the claim and question Muckey, a California native who joined the famed orchestra in 2006 and who'd previously faced accusations of rape and sexual misconduct. He provided proof — her messages to him — that their encounter was consensual. 'Not only did C.S. explicitly recall having sex . . . she both complimented and thanked [Muckey] for the sex and asked for his telephone number,' according to court papers. The pair had sex twice, according to messages included in the lawsuit, in which C.S. begged Muckey not to tell her boyfriend. 'I did consent,' she wrote, according to court docs. Muckey ended the affair after finding out C.S. had a boyfriend and the two had no more contact until she sent him a 2011 Facebook friend request, he claimed. He wasn't allowed to see the evidence which led to his October termination, prompting the trumpet man to file his lawsuit against Levy and the Philharmonic so he can bring C.S. to court for defamation. Muckey has not worked since he was told to pack up his trumpet. 'His career has been destroyed and that's not an understatement,' said Muckey's lawyer, Steven Hyman. 'He's unable to get a job anyplace else and he has tried.' It's not the first time Muckey, who was set to earn $205,000 base pay as part of the Philharmonic, has been accused of misconduct. He and another musician with the Philharmonic were fired twice in four years after facing allegations of rape and sexual misconduct in 2018. The two, who denied wrongdoing, were reinstated by an arbitrator in 2020 after their union took up the case. Those previous allegations did not involve C.S., Muckey's lawyer said. Muckey, who is now married with two kids, was 'fully exonerated' of any wrongdoing by an arbitrator in 2020, Hyman said, adding, 'We have no idea really when or where this new claim arose.' The Philharmonic declined comment on the litigation. Levy Employment Law didn't respond to a message seeking comment.
