Former Viacom Executive Sues, Alleging Firing Was Tied to Company Tax Avoidance Scam

A former Viacom executive is suing the company for being fired in 2014 after she allegedly voiced concerns about the legality of a Viacom tax avoidance plan involving revenue from licensing rights to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The suit, filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, asks for Nataki Williams' reinstatement to her job, along with back pay and interest, or front pay if she isn't reinstated. Williams, who was vice president-financial planning and analysis when she was fired, said in her suit she had raised issues multiple times with Viacom about its plans to attribute the licensing rights revenues to the Netherlands for tax purposes -- which would save Viacom millions of tax dollars -- and that her firing over an employee benefits issue was a pretext. In a statement Wednesday, Viacom said Williams "is a former Viacom employee who was terminated in 2014 for fraudulently claiming company benefits to which she was not entitled. Her legal claims are completely without merit, and we will vigorously defend against these claims in court.”