Howard Stern has been accused of wrongful termination in a lawsuit filed by a former executive assistant who helped oversee his Hamptons home.
Leslie Kuhn previously worked as a personal assistant to Stern, 72, and his wife, Beth, 53, and was reportedly dismissed from the role in February.
She initially joined SiriusXM’s The Howard Stern Show as an office manager in September 2022, before moving into the position of Stern’s executive assistant in January 2024.
By May 2024, Kuhn claims the Sterns asked her to move to Southampton, New York, to assist with running their property, Oceanview.
‘extensive at-home feline rescue and fostering operations’
Page Six reports she was also tasked with supervising staff connected to Beth’s cat rescue and fostering work at the home.
In the filing, Kuhn says that in December, she received a letter from Stern’s company stating she would be awarded a bonus and that a raise would take effect in 2026.
She was reportedly due to see her annual pay rise to $265,000, alongside an $80,000 bonus.
During her employment, Kuhn is said to have signed a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) restricting discussion of business matters and the Sterns’ private life—though she alleges she never actually saw the NDA she was said to have agreed to.
‘daily activities and personal habits’
The document is also alleged to have barred Kuhn from sharing details as specific as the family’s:
‘food preferences, sleeping habits, [and] hobbies’.
In addition, the complaint says the NDA would have prevented her from speaking about their consumer product use, restaurant choices, travel accommodations, entertainment tastes, political affiliations, and:
‘any other matters affecting or relating to the Company and its business, and the personal and business affairs of the Company’.
Kuhn alleges that in February her employment ended suddenly.
According to the suit, she was:
‘allegedly terminated for cause’
and the stated reason for her dismissal was:
‘misconduct of a nature that would be detrimental to one’s reputation’.
The lawsuit argues that making such claims against Kuhn could have a:
‘chilling effect’
on her ability to secure future work.
Kuhn, however, maintains she was fired due to a:
‘hostile work environment’.
Rather than seeking monetary damages, she is asking the court to declare the NDA invalid on the basis that it was allegedly fraudulent, so she can speak publicly about what she says happened during her employment.
Kuhn’s attorney, John J. Leonard, claimed in the complaint, per PEOPLE:
“Kuhn contends that her termination was the result of, among other things, a hostile work environment and enablement of that hostile work environment, immense pressures on the household created by irresponsible and untenable animal rescue and fostering operations occurring on-site, and massively disorganized and questionable business operations and accounting practices.
“As such, Kuhn fully intends to disclose details concerning the facts surrounding her employment.”
Representatives for Stern have been contacted for comment.