Olivia Wilde and Jason Sudeikis should avoid "potentially destructive emotional reactions" to the lawsuit brought against them by their former nanny, according to a legal expert.
Ericka Genaro filed a wrongful termination lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court on Tuesday morning, according to court documents obtained by Fox News Digital. The nanny argued that working in the household during the beginning of the couple's split led to "unbearable" anxiety.
She also claimed she had been fired by Sudeikis "on the spot" while also noting that she had previously told the actor she had to stop working for the family due to her increased anxiety and depression.
Sudeikis and Wilde share two children; Otis and Daisy.
"For many employers, their gut reaction to a situation like this is to countersue. Although that may be an understandable emotional response, I would advise against it," Joseph Harris told Fox News Digital. "In an employment case, that can result in the employee amending their complaint to add an additional claim for unlawful retaliation, which only makes matters worse."
"I would also counsel the employer to consider confidential mediation," he added. "It is unlikely that a domestic employer will benefit from a protracted and public lawsuit with a former household employee who may have been privy to private information about the family. Confidential mediation may be a way to resolve the matter quickly, quietly and for a fraction of the cost of litigation."
Attorney Devin McRae explained to Fox News Digital that the former nanny's argument isn't strong. He pointed to a section of the lawsuit where Genaro seemingly claims she had told Sudeikis that she had to stop working for him before he fired her "on the spot."
"The way I read this, she said she was quitting and that she advised that she would desire to stay on as long as possible to find a replacement," McRae, of law firm Early Sullivan Wright Gizer & McRae, explained. "So, if she quit, and she offered to stay on until there was a suitable replacement, and the employer says, 'No, that's okay, you can just go' – that could be problematic for her."
"They may be able to take that allegation and say there's no termination as a matter of law," he continued. "She quit and offered to, according to her own allegations, to stay on until a replacement was made. We declined the offer. But we didn't terminate her. She terminated her own employment."
Treating household employees like family is one of the "biggest mistakes" employers make, according to one legal expert.
"The biggest mistake is forgetting that, even though household employees may feel like family, they are not your family. They are employees, who are subject to many of the same employment laws, rules and regulations as employees in other employment settings," Harris explained. "Or, to put it more bluntly: don’t be naive about hiring household help."
"If the employment relationship deteriorates, and the employee feels as though they were treated unfairly (whether you believe that feeling is justified or not), there can be a real risk of legal action."
It's unclear whether Sudeikis and Wilde had Genaro sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA), but experts said that it wouldn't matter when it comes to the former nanny's legal rights.
An NDA is not going to stop her from being able to pursue rights in court under applicable statutes," McRae told Fox News Digital.
Harris, who specializes in representing employers, advised that a formal relationship is necessary for household employees.
"Speaking generally from my experience, many domestic employers do not take the same precautions with household employees as they might with employees in other settings," he told Fox News Digital. "They don’t formalize the relationship in the same way and, as a result, don’t implement many of the protective measures that an employer might implement with employees in other settings."
"For example, many domestic employers do not provide their household employees with offer letters, NDAs and other employment-related agreements. Particularly if you are a high-net-worth individual or a celebrity, you cannot afford to be cavalier about hiring someone to work in your home."
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Genaro worked for Sudeikis and Wilde between 2018 and 2021. She was the nanny employed by the former couple during their reported split in 2020. Following the couple's break-up, Genaro claims she began suffering from anxiety and depression after Wilde "abruptly" left the home, and Sudeikis began "leaning" on her for emotional support.
"Wilde's sudden absence from the home had an adverse consequence on its emotional state, including Sudeikis leaning on the presence of Plaintiff for support," the lawsuit reads.
Genaro also claimed that her role as the kids' caretaker had "increased exponentially" as she had been expected to take on duties typically done by Wilde, now that the actress was not living in the home.
At that time, Sudeikis would often "seemingly require" Genaro to stay up late after the children had gone to sleep to have conversations about his relationship with Wilde, according to Genaro.
Sudeikis and Wilde eventually agreed to participate in group therapy with the nanny after news of their split hit the media.
On or around Feb. 1, 2021 the former nanny indicated her intention to move on from the employment with Sudeikis and Wilde, according to the court documents. Genaro told the family that she would stay on until they were able to find someone to replace her.
The next day, an osteopath, to whom she was referred by a therapist for physical pain due to stress and anxiety, instructed the former nanny to observe three days of "radio silence" from Sudeikis and Wilde.
After being informed of the three days of silence by the therapist, Sudeikis requested to speak to the nanny immediately. In an attempt to follow the osteopath's recommendation, Genaro told the "Ted Lasso" star she couldn't speak to him.
Genaro claimed in the court documents that Sudeikis "terminated her on the spot."
This isn't the first time the former nanny has made headlines regarding her relationship with Sudeikis and Wilde. Genaro gave an interview to the Daily Mail in October in which she spoke about the couple's split.
The interview was slammed as "false and scurrilous" by Wilde and Sudeikis at the time.
"As parents, it is incredibly upsetting to learn that a former nanny of our two young children would choose to make such false and scurrilous accusations about us publicly," the former couple shared in a joint statement to Fox News Digital.
"Her now 18-month-long campaign of harassing us, as well as loved ones, close friends and colleagues, has reached its unfortunate apex. We will continue to focus on raising and protecting our children with the sincere hope that she will now choose to leave our family alone," the statement concluded.
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