Massage Envy Sex Abuse Lawsuit

A growing number of women are now suing Massage Envy (a national massage therapy chain) alleging that they were sexually assaulted by company employees during their massage. The lawsuits began getting filed several years ago and are now being filed across the country.

Our national sex abuse lawyers are currently seeking Massage Envy sexual assault cases. If you were sexually abused or touched inappropriately during a massage session at a Massage Envy location, contact us today for free case evaluation.

About Massage Envy

Massage Envy is a national chain of retail massage service stores. Massage Envy has locations across the country and they are the biggest massage retailer in the country. In addition to traditional massage services, Massage Therapy provide a host of other “spa” type services, including facials, and personal stretching sessions.

Like any massage, services at Massage Envy are provided by a massage therapist in a private, one-on-one setting. The client getting the massage disrobes to a certain extent (depending on the type of massage) and is in a room with the door shut while the therapist performs the massage service.

Massage Envy is the largest massage chain and the biggest employer of massage therapists in the United States, with over 1,100 locations nationwide, including all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Massage Envy employs over 20,000 massage therapist across the country. Most of them are licensed by their state. Each year they perform over 18 million massages.

That is a lot of massages. Despite being aware of the real and highly foreseeable risk of sexual assault to customers, Massage Envy sex abuse lawsuits allege that the company has failed to establish and enforce adequate procedures and protocols to mitigate this risk. When such incidents do occur, the company pulls out the sex abuse defense playbook. It frequently relies on secretive arbitration proceedings, overly broad confidentiality orders, and other tactics to keep customers, employees, regulators, law enforcement, and the public unaware of these serious occurrences at Massage Envy locations nationwide.

Sexual Assaults by Massage Envy Therapists

A significant issue of sexual misconduct by massage therapists at Massage Envy franchise locations has emerged, with hundreds of women reporting incidents since at least 2015. These women have alleged groping, penetration, and other forms of sexual assault during their massages, leading many to file lawsuits. In response to these serious allegations, Massage Envy has been accused of attempted to limit its legal and public relations exposure by instructing staff to manage incidents internally, aiming to de-escalate situations and avoid involving law enforcement.

Several years ago, a report was released and publish by the Washington Post and other major news outlets detailing a large number of incidents involving alleged sexual abuse of clients by Massage Envy therapists. The report identified a group of nearly 200 women all of whom alleged that they had been sexually assaulted to varying degrees during a massage appointment at Massage Envy.

The nature of the acts of sexual assault varied in each case, but they mostly followed a similar and predictable pattern. The female clients claimed that they were in the massage rooms, usually laying face down on the therapy table with no clothes on their upper body and just underwear, with a towel for coverage. In almost all of the incidents, the sexual assault involving a male massage therapist touching or groping the client’s breasts and other private areas unexpectedly and without consent during the course of the massage. In some cases the incidents escalated to digital and even oral penetration.

Massage Envy Ignored Complaints

One of the consistent themes among of the hundreds of incidents detailed in the report was the way in which Massage Envy store managers and employees ignored and deflected complaints from the victims of these incidents. Victims said that when the attempted to report the acts of sexual assault to employees at the Massage Envy store, they were met with a very dismissive attitude.

Lawyers for Massage Envy have since claimed that the company went to great lengths to take all complaints seriously and investigate allegations. However, various early news reports all found that Massage Envy’s company policies regarding how to handle these complaints were focused primarily on protecting the company’s image and shielding it from liability.

Criminal Charges Against Massage Envy Therapists

While most of the alleged acts of assault at Massage Therapy were mostly ignored, there have been a few cases in which the Massage Envy therapists were reported to the police. In a small handful of these cases, the Massage Envy therapists were charged with criminal sex offenses.

For example, a therapist from a Massage Envy location in Washington, DC was charged with first-degree sexual abuse based on allegation that he sexually assaulted 3 different female clients during a massage. That massage therapist was eventually convicted and sentenced to 60 months in prison.

Sex Abuse Lawsuits Against Massage Envy

The news report about incidents of sexual assault by Massage Envy therapist brought a lot of public attention to this issue. As a direct result of that attention, victims across the country began coming forward to tell their stories. Many of these victims also began filing sexual abuse lawsuits against Massage Envy.

The sex abuse lawsuits against Massage Envy are based on allegations that the company was negligent in several ways and that this negligence enabled or allowed the sexual assaults on clients to happen. Among other things, the lawsuits claim that Massage Envy was negligent in failing to properly screen massage therapists during the hiring process and identify potential abusers. The lawsuits also claim that Massage Envy failed to create appropriate and effective policies and procedures for preventing sexual assaults on clients.

Another general theme in the Massage Envy lawsuits is the way in which the company handled and responded to individual complaints of sexual assault made by clients. The company is accused of basically ignoring, discouraging, and deflecting all complaints alleging that a massage therapist sexually assault a client or acted inappropriately. Instead of investigating the incident and taking appropriate action (such as firing the therapist) the company did everything they could to discourage the client from pursuing their complaint.

Massage Envy Sex Abuse Lawsuit Settlements

Over the years, a large number of Massage Envy sexual assault lawsuits have been filed against the company all across the country. Most of these lawsuits have eventually been resolved in out-of-court settlements. Unfortunately, the terms of these settlement agreements are strictly confidential so we have no way of knowing what type of compensation was paid.

Contact Us About Massage Envy Sex Assault Lawsuits

If you were the victim of sexual assault, groping, or inappropriate touching during a massage service at a Massage Envy store, you may be able to file a civil lawsuit and get compensation. Our national sex abuse lawyers are accepting Massage Envy abuse cases in all 50 states. Call us at 800-553-8082 or contact us online.