A former JPMorgan staffer who has accused a senior executive of sexual harrassment had taken advice from an online legal chatbot while describing similar allegations, according to reporting from The New York Post.
Indian-origin Chirayu Rana, whose now-withdrawn lawsuit alleged that executive director Lorna Hajdini forced him into degrading sexual acts, is said to have used the legal advice platform AskALawyerOnCall.com around July 2024, roughly 10 months before his claims became public.
In the exchange, the user identifying as Rana described sexual assault and workplace retaliation.
“I was raped, secually assulted [sic], harassed, and forced to do drugs by my former boss at Morgan Stanley,’’ the transcript quoted him as saying.
“I was then retaliated against for seeking to move groups internally at the firm,” he allegedly added.
He claimed: “HR conducted an ‘investigation’ but they ultimately made me signed [sic] a Separation Agreement.”
The chatbot interaction was published in screenshots cited by The New York Post. It shows Rana later referring to the perpetrator as “he”, a detail that contrasts with his later court filing against Hajdini, who is a female executive at JPMorgan Chase.
The platform displayed the exchange publicly as an example of its service, including the user’s name. A disclaimer on the site noted that Askalawyeroncall.com is a public forum and questions and responses are not private or confidential.
In the same conversation, the user described signing a separation agreement under pressure and claimed he had been threatened.
“Yes but I was forced to sign under duress,” he allegedly wrote, adding that he had “AMPLE evidence” of wrongdoing.
The exchange continued with the chatbot asking whether his agreement included clauses preventing legal action. Rana allegedly reiterated that he had been coerced, saying, “I signed it because I was scared and felt I had no choice. He said he would ruin my career if I didn’t comply.”
According to the transcript, he also said, “I’ve been struggling mentally since then. It was a terrible experience, and I left under awful circumstances. He told everyone a false narrative about me, which made it even harder.”
At one point, the chatbot response referenced a different timeline, suggesting the alleged events may have taken place in 2020, which was not clearly aligned with Rana’s account.
“Since this happened in 2020, you might still have options. Have you considered filing a workers’ compensation claim?” the chatbot responded.
Rana allegedly replied, “I didn’t think about that. I just feel stuck because I signed that waiver,’’ and added, “Everyone seems to refuse to help me because of it.”
He also reportedly asked whether he had a valid legal case and whether any lawyer would take it on.
“Do you think I actually have a valid claim?” and “Do you know anyone who might take my case?” he allegedly asked.
The NYP report states that Rana was connected in the exchange to a user identifying as “Joycelaw,” who claimed to be a legal expert in employment and business law.
The chatbot interaction is similar to Rana’s formal internal complaint at JPMorgan, which was filed in May 2025. JPMorgan later concluded an internal review involving phone records, emails, employee interviews and said that there was no evidence supporting his allegations.
Rana is a Rutgers graduate who joined JPMorgan’s leveraged finance team in 2024. He later filed a lawsuit accusing Hajdini of forcing him into sexual acts, drugging him, and threatening his career if he did not comply. The complaint also alleged unannounced visits to his home and coercion into sex.
The lawsuit was filed under a pseudonym (John Doe) and has since been withdrawn for corrections. Hajdini and her legal team has denied all allegations.
