A Philly lawyer for sexual abuse victims left his firm after an ex-client’s complaint was leaked

Brian Kent had established himself in Philadelphia’s legal community as a go-to personal injury lawyer for survivors of sexual abuse, with clients that included people abused by Jerry Sandusky, the Church of Scientology, Pornhub, Massage Envy, and the Southern Baptist Church.

Kent, a former Montgomery County prosecutor, received the National Center on Sexual Exploitation’s civilian leadership award. He served on the board of Child USA, a think tank that combats child abuse.

In the last two weeks, however, Kent left Laffey, Bucci & Kent, the Center City law firm that he cofounded, and separated from the board of Child USA, which on Friday called for a criminal investigation into the lawyer.

The sudden departures are the result of a leak of a confidential complaint filed with the Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania that accuses the prominent lawyer of engaging in a sexual relationship with a client, in violation of the rules of professional conduct for lawyers in the state.

The complaint, which appears to have first been publicized this month by a YouTuber known as “The Rabbit,” was filed in November 2022 by two Philadelphia lawyers on behalf of the client whom Kent had represented. She is identified in the complaint only as “Jane Doe” and is a survivor of sexual abuse.

The leak of the complaint is highly unusual. Disciplinary board investigations are kept secret unless they result in public sanctions. The Inquirer has independently confirmed the authenticity of the complaint.

On Friday, Marci Hamilton, the founder and CEO of Child USA, said in a statement that other people have since come forward with similar complaints, indicating that “there appears to be a pattern of manipulative and abusive behavior by Kent toward vulnerable clients nationwide seeking to find validation and justice in the legal system.” The organization did not immediately provide details on those allegations.

“There are others out there who have the same story,” Hamilton, a political science professor at the University of Pennsylvania, said in an interview. “We just didn’t want to let anybody think this should be ignored now. This is when the FBI ought to get involved.”

Child USA’s board, in a statement last weekend, said that it had “recently learned” of the disciplinary board complaint. It said Kent resigned from the board on April 15.

The Legal Intelligencer first reported last week that Kent had left his law firm. He had described the departure as a “mutual” and “amicable.” Firm cofounder Jeffrey Laffey, however, later disputed Kent’s account, saying in a statement to the Philadelphia-based legal journal that “his removal was not ‘mutual’ or ‘amicable.’”

Laffey said that the firm stands by its statements, but referred requests for comment to Kent. The firm has been removing any mention of Kent from its website.

Kent’s lawyer, Ellen Brotman, said late Friday afternoon: “These allegations are outrageous and completely false. We will vigorously defend against them.” She declined to comment on the status of the disciplinary board investigation.

Thomas Counselors at Law, a New York-based law firm that has worked alongside Laffey, Bucci & Kent on sexual assault cases, released its own statement last week, calling for Kent’s former firm to “determine the truth about Mr. Kent’s conduct with those under his care or supervision.”

“We abhor the misuse of power to prey upon any individual,” lawyer Kat Thomas wrote. “Whether it be between a doctor and patient, employer and employee, priest and parishioner, or an attorney and client; it is never OK to exploit a position of power for personal gratification.”

Kent, a survivor of clergy sexual abuse himself, was a founding partner of the crime-victim department at Laffey, Bucci & Kent. He previously worked as a sex crimes prosecutor, and has served on the board of the National Crime Victim Bar association, and as a volunteer attorney for the Montgomery County Child Advocacy Project, according to his now-deleted law firm bio.

A spokesperson for the state disciplinary board declined to comment on the case. Kent has no history of previous disciplinary action, according to the board’s database.