Prominent attorney Douglas H. Wigdor dropped Tara Reade, who has accused the Democrats’ presumptive 2020 presidential nominee Joe Biden of sexual assault, as a client this week as questions about her past have been reported.
Reade is a former Senate staffer who came forward this past March saying Biden assaulted her in 1993. The former vice president repeatedly has denied Reade’s claims, bluntly saying it “never happened.”
The high-powered attorney’s move to sever ties was “by no means a reflection on whether then-Senator Biden sexually assaulted Ms. Reade,” Wigdor said in a statement provided to The New York Times.
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Wigdor did not specify the exact reason why he no longer was representing Reade but attacked the way media covered her.
“Much of what has been written about Ms. Reade is not probative of whether then-Senator Biden sexually assaulted her, but rather is intended to victim-shame and attack her credibility on unrelated and irrelevant matters,” Wigdor’s statement continued. “We have and will continue to represent survivors regardless of their alleged predator’s status or politics.”
Reade’s claims have polarized the media, as many mainstream news organizations were slow to cover her accusations against Biden. As a result, other critics have condemned the media for hypocrisy amid the “believe-all-women” era ushered in by the #MeToo movement.
Wigdor LLP did not immediately respond to Fox News’ request for comment.
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Reade has come under fire for billing herself as “a domestic violence expert” when testifying as a government witness in Monterey County, Calif. court cases, with ABC News reporting that she “touted Biden’s work for women” while under oath, citing transcripts.
She served as an expert witness in various cases for years, but her newfound fame has put a spotlight on her legitimacy.
“Defense attorneys are reportedly now trying to determine if the transcripts show she provided false testimony about her credentials,” ABC News reported, noting that claims she earned a B.A. from Antioch University have raised eyebrows.
The Times also reported that lawyers were looking into Reade’s past.
“On Thursday in California, lawyers who had faced off against her in court began raising questions about the legitimacy of her testimony, and the verdicts that followed, after news reports that Antioch University had disputed her claim of receiving a bachelor’s degree from its Seattle campus,” the Times reported.
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An Antioch University spokesperson told ABC News that Reade “attended but did not graduate.”
Reade did not immediately respond to Fox News’ request for comment.