Court dismisses all claims brought by Mayor’s former assistant following findings of misconduct and evidence spoliation
Miller Barondess has successfully defended the City of Inglewood and Mayor James T. Butts, Jr. in a high-profile lawsuit brought by the Mayor’s former assistant, Melanie McDade-Dickens, who alleged harassment, retaliation, and wrongful termination following her 2019 dismissal. Defendants maintained that McDade’s employment was terminated after an internal investigation uncovered serious misconduct, including payroll fraud, document forgery, and the use of falsified records to obtain a home loan, among other violations of City policy.
(The case is McDade-Dickens v. City of Inglewood, et al., 21STCV02999 (L.A. Super. Crt., filed January 25, 2021). The Miller Barondess team includes Mira Hashmall, Kiva G. Schrager, Claire-Lise Y. Kutlay, and paralegal Louise Goldwire.)
In March 2025, the firm secured a significant sanctions order after the Court found that McDade committed perjury and destroyed key evidence that undermined her claims. The Court imposed over $217,000 in monetary sanctions against McDade and her attorneys and issued sweeping evidentiary sanctions based on her failure to produce critical information and other discovery misconduct.
On November 6, 2025, the Court granted defendants’ motion for summary judgment, dismissing all claims in their entirety.
“This case was frivolous from the start, and things just got worse for Ms. McDade after we uncovered extensive spoliation of evidence, perjury, and other litigation misconduct,” said lead counsel Mira Hashmall. “We are thrilled that the Court has resolved all claims in favor of Mayor Butts and the City.”