A former colleague alleges months of sexual assault and racial harassment by a senior exec.
A senior executive at one of the world’s most powerful financial institutions is at the center of a deeply troubling lawsuit that alleges a months-long pattern of sexual assault, racial harassment and workplace intimidation carried out against a junior male colleague.
The complaint, filed in New York County Supreme Court, names Lorna Hajdini, an executive director in JPMorgan Chase’s leveraged finance division, as the primary defendant, alongside JPMorgan Chase itself. The plaintiff, identified in court documents only as John Doe, is described as an Asian married banker who joined the firm in March 2024. JPMorgan Chase has denied all of the allegations.
What the lawsuit alleges
According to the complaint, the alleged misconduct began in spring 2024 after Hajdini assumed a senior supervisory role over Doe. He claims she used her authority over his career progression, including control over his bonuses, promotions and standing at the bank, to pressure him into repeated sexual encounters over the course of several months.
The filing describes a series of alleged incidents beginning in May 2024 that escalated in severity throughout the year. Doe claims he repeatedly rejected Hajdini’s advances but was met with threats of professional retaliation each time. In multiple alleged encounters, the lawsuit claims she made his career advancement, including a promotion to executive director, contingent on his compliance with her demands.
Among the most serious allegations in the complaint, Doe claims Hajdini admitted to drugging him with Rohypnol, commonly known as a date rape drug, as well as an erection-enhancing substance, before engaging in sexual conduct without his consent. The lawsuit also alleges she used her executive access to monitor his personal bank account and track his movements, a claim that, if true, would represent a significant breach of both professional boundaries and personal privacy.
The complaint further accuses Hajdini of subjecting Doe to persistent racial harassment, including the use of racially derogatory language directed at him and his wife during several of the alleged encounters. Two witnesses are cited in the filing as corroborating portions of his account.
Retaliation and aftermath
According to the lawsuit, the alleged harassment continued into September 2024. Doe claims he began seeking employment elsewhere in late 2024 but alleges that Hajdini and other senior managers provided damaging references that undermined his job search.
In May 2025, Doe submitted a formal written complaint to JPMorgan detailing the alleged racial and gender-based harassment and sexual abuse. The lawsuit claims the bank retaliated within days, placing him on involuntary leave and revoking his access to company systems. The complaint also describes threatening anonymous phone calls Doe allegedly received after filing his internal grievance, including one voicemail that purportedly threatened to contact immigration authorities about him and his family.
Doe’s attorney, Daniel J. Kaiser, has said his client has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and has struggled to find new employment since the dispute began. The lawsuit seeks damages for emotional distress, lost earnings and reputational harm, as well as punitive compensation and changes to workplace practices at the bank.
JPMorgan’s response
JPMorgan Chase has pushed back firmly against the lawsuit’s claims. A spokesperson for the bank said that following an internal investigation, the firm does not believe there is any merit to the allegations, and noted that while numerous employees cooperated with the investigation, the plaintiff declined to participate and did not provide facts that would have been central to supporting his account.
Hajdini, who has reportedly worked at JPMorgan for nearly 15 years and remains employed at the company, has not made any public statement in response to the lawsuit. The allegations contained in the complaint have not been independently verified.
A case Wall Street is watching
The lawsuit arrives at a moment when financial institutions continue to face intense scrutiny over their internal cultures and the mechanisms they use to handle misconduct complaints. Whether Doe’s account of what happened inside JPMorgan’s leveraged finance division holds up in court remains to be determined, but the specificity and severity of the allegations have already drawn widespread attention across the industry.
The case is proceeding in New York County Supreme Court. No trial date has been set.