FILIPPATOS PLLC AND MESIDOR PLLC REPRESENT FORMER BDO EXECUTIVE IN DEFAMATION LAWSUIT

LAW FIRMS DECHERT AND MCDERMOTT WILL & SCHULTE SUED FOR DEFAMATION

NEW YORK, Sept. 10, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- A former Managing Partner at BDO USA, P.C., has filed a federal lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, alleging defamation against the attorney and the law firms representing her former employer in litigation regarding her termination.  The complaint alleges that not only was defense counsel willing to far exceed the scope of zealous representation and the attendant litigation privilege in order to malign an opposing party, but also the two law firms, Dechert and McDermott Will & Schulte, with knowledge of this tortious scheme who ratified the misconduct. 

The complaint, filed by Filippatos PLLC and Mesidor PLLC, further contends that plaintiff, Eleni Lagos, a nationally recognized tax executive and one of BDO's highest ranking women, who first alleged that BDO  terminated her employment after her son developed a sudden, incapacitating medical condition, became the victim once more of defamation at the hands of defense counsel.  

Lagos asserts that defense counsel defamed her by falsely accusing her of "using her son's medical condition as a cover for her own performance issues." The complaint alleges the statement goes far beyond a comment about a former employee's work performance. Instead, the allegedly defamatory statement was a malicious, and inaccurate, statement intended to damage plaintiff's professional reputation and punish her for having the courage to hold her former employer, BDO, accountable. 

According to the 12-page complaint, the defendants, through their tortious machinations and defamatory statements, have irreparably injured Lagos's professional reputation and exacerbated her already extreme emotional distress. While attorneys and law firms both have a duty to represent their clients vigorously, they also have an affirmative duty not to make false, malicious statements to the media regarding opposing litigants. 

"The filing of the complaint continues to send a clear and consistent message to BDO and its counsel—bullying does not thwart justice," said Parisis G. Filippatos, counsel for the plaintiff at Filippatos PLLC.  "We look forward to our client's day in court." 

"Litigation defense counsel cannot weaponize media outlets to publicize false, malicious attacks under the guise of legal representation. Defamatory statements targeting Ms. Lagos were a calculated campaign to punish her for seeking accountability and to destroy her professional reputation," said Marjorie Mesidor, counsel for the plaintiff at Mesidor PLLC.

This lawsuit seeks general and special damages, as well as punitive damages, in excess of $75,000,000.

Mesidor PLLC and Filippatos PLLC are nationally recognized litigation firms dedicated to combating employment discrimination, retaliation, and harassment in the workplace.

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SOURCE Filippatos PLLC; Mesidor PLLC