BREAKING NEWSHoward Stern and Wife Beth Sued Over 'Hostile Work Environment' as Fired Ex-Assistant Fights Against Ironclad NDA in Bitter Legal Battle
Howard Stern and his wife, Beth Stern, have been accused of fostering a 'hostile work environment.'
April 6 2026, Published 2:15 p.m. ET
Howard Stern and his wife, Beth, were hit with a lawsuit filed by their former assistant, who claims she was fired from a "hostile work environment."
The couple has been named in a bombshell lawsuit filed in New York court by a woman named Leslie Kuhn, who claims she worked as the Sterns' executive assistant and was booked busy by Beth after being asked to move into their 20,000-square-foot Southampton mansion, TMZ revealed in a Monday, April 6, report.
Leslie said she was axed by The Howard Stern Show host and his wife less than two years after re-locating to live in their home, alleging her firing came as a result of 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."
The ex-employee claims she was fired less than two years after relocating to live and work inside the couple’s Southampton home.
Upon being fired, Leslie claims she was presented with an ironclad NDA by Howard's production company, One Twelve, insisting the document was made to look like it was signed years prior, when she first began working for the Sterns.
Leslie said the papers were signed before she participated in any interviews and believes her signature is "nothing more than her typewritten name in the same font style and size used to identify the parties' names in the recitals of the agreement."
Ex-Howard Stern Assistant Asks Judge to Declare NDA Unenforceable
According to the complaint, the assistant alleges she was terminated despite being notified of a raise just weeks earlier.
In addition to the lawsuit, Leslie is asking the judge to declare the NDA unenforceable in order for her to legally disclose details of her employment and openly discuss accusations the Sterns may use against her.
"Leslie fully intends to disclose details concerning the facts surrounding her employment by Stern, Beth Stern, [SiriusXM] and One Twelve and termination of that employment as necessary to address the accusations made against her and to protect her reputation and future employment prospects," the lawsuit reads.
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Howard and Beth Stern Accused of Firing Assistant Weeks After Notice of a Raise
The lawsuit also challenges multiple alleged confidentiality agreements tied to the Sterns and their production company.
The situation became even more complicated behind the scenes. According to the complaint, Leslie had been notified of a raise for 2026 as recently as December 2025 — just weeks before she was ultimately fired in February of this year by One Twelve Inc., with Vice President of Finance Mark D. Garten citing “alleged misconduct.”
After her termination, Leslie claims she was also presented with a separate "one-sided and non-mutual" separation agreement by Pryor Cashman LLP, which represented the company. Her attorney alleges the document imposed sweeping confidentiality and nondisclosure provisions that would prevent her from disclosing “personal information, household information, charitable information and business information” related to Howard, Beth and their inner circle.
The former assistant is asking a judge to rule that the alleged nondisclosure agreements are invalid and unenforceable.
The lawsuit also claims Leslie was pointed to additional confidentiality agreements — including one allegedly signed in 2022 and another from May — which she disputes ever agreeing to as a condition of her employment. One of those agreements allegedly extended to the “personal affairs of individuals in any way associated with the company,” including “daily activities and personal habits (e.g. food preferences, sleeping habits, hobbies).”
Leslie ultimately refused to sign the separation agreement, arguing the confidentiality provisions were invalid and unenforceable — a key issue she is now asking the court to decide.
