Pornhub, one of the most leading porn websites in the world is facing huge legal trouble as a team of 40 women, only identified as 'Jane Doe' has sued Mindgeek, the parent company of the porn platform. In a plaint filed, Jane Doe alleged that the Montreal-based internet porn company knowingly profited from the sex-trafficking operation GirlsDoPorn.
Jane Doe claims compensation of $80 million
The suit was filed on Tuesday afternoon, and in the plaint, the plaintiff seeks punitive and compensatory damages of more than $80 million.
"Plaintiffs have suffered damages including, but not limited to, severe emotional distress, significant trauma, attempted suicide, and social and familial ostracization. Further, MindGeek has received ill-gotten gains by selling, marketing, and exploiting videos featuring the Plaintiffs' likenesses," the complaint claimed.
Last year, a similar suit was filed against Pornhub by a team of other women whose identity was protected. In that case, the plaintiffs alleged that the porn website coerced, defrauded, and intimidated them into filming adult videos. In that case, a California judged pronounced a verdict in favor of 'Jane Does', and awarded them damages of nearly $13 million.
Coercion and fraud
In the new case, the plaintiff alleges that Mindgeek, the parent company of Pornhub was very much aware of the fact that GirlsDoPorn was using coercion, fraud, and intimidation in their business practices as early as 2009, and until the fall of 2016.
"If MindGeek did not know GirlsDoPorn was a sex trafficking venture before October 2019, it should have known for a great number of reasons. The most notable of which is that GirlsDoPorn's victims sent MindGeek complaints detailing the fraud and coercion they were subjected to by GirlsDoPorn," alleged the complaint.
The lawsuit added that Mindgeek continues to reap profit from GirlsDoPorn, as the company still hosts the victims' videos on its website. In the meantime, Pornhub has removed more than 10 million porn videos from its website, under a new rule that prohibits unverified users from uploading clips.
