Howard Stern Hostile Work Environment Lawsuit Dismissed

A New York judge has granted Howard Stern’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by his former executive assistant. New York State Supreme Court Justice Melissa A. Crane ruled Wednesday in favor of the radio host, his wife Beth Stern, and their production company One Twelve. 

In the order, Crane stated that some of Leslie Kuhn’s claims “are moot” and declared: “Defendants’ motion to dismiss the complaint is granted and the complaint is dismissed in its entirety, with costs and disbursements to defendants as taxed by the Clerk of the Court, and the Clerk is directed to enter judgment accordingly in favor of defendants.”

Kuhn sued on April 5, accusing the Sterns of creating a “hostile work environment” and engaging in “questionable business operations” before her February 2026 termination. She sought a declaratory judgment valued at “not less than $2.5 million” and aimed to void confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements she said were forced on her at the time of what she called a “manufactured” firing, rendering them “fraudulent and unenforceable.”

According to the complaint, Kuhn was promoted in January 2024 from office manager of SiriusXM’s The Howard Stern Show to Stern’s personal executive assistant. The Sterns then asked her to move to their Southampton, N.Y., residence, where she said she was required to manage mansion staff schedules and payroll, handle general household operations, and assist with Beth Stern’s at-home feline rescue and fostering efforts.

Stern’s side filed the motion to dismiss on April 29, 2026, describing the suit as “a thinly veiled attempted shakedown” in which Kuhn allegedly “hatched a plan to extract a staggering ‘hush-money’ payment.”