DORDICK LAW CORPORATION
Zarini v. Gucci et al.
T he glare of publicity in a high-profile case can work to a plaintiff’s advantage -- or not, said Gary A. Dordick of the pressures surrounding the litigation he and his daughter, Taylor B. Dordick, undertook for the Gucci heiress Alexandra Zarini. Her suit against her former stepfather for childhood sexual abuse drew significant media attention that peaked as a Los Angeles jury voted for a $115 million damages award. “It takes experience to deal with the press on top of everything you have to do to handle your case,” Dordick said. “Victims of sexual assault can have a difficult time standing up for themselves, but once they do, they often want people to understand what they have been through.” Dordick added that his client showed immense strength in the courtroom. “She was a wreck. It was a nightmare for her to have to sit 10 feet away for weeks and weeks of trial from this man who had abused her, but she wanted very much to show she could do it to help the next person stand up for their rights.”
getting the story told. “He wasn’t held accountable criminally; he wasn’t put in jail. So then a goal of hers became to have it come out publicly what he’d done.” The lawsuit originally named Zarini’s mother and grandmother failed to protect her and fostered an enabling environment, then covered up the abuse and coerced Zarini into silence to protect the family name. Both those defendants were dropped, and the suit proceeded against Ruffalo only. Zarini v. Gucci et al., 20STCV34041 (L.A. Super. Ct., filed Sept. 8, 2020). After the verdict was announced, Ruffalo’s attorney, Donna A. Rotunno, blamed the California lookback law that reopened the time limits for sexual abuse cases. “We will always respect the jury’s verdict. It doesn’t mean we agree with it,” she said. “I do think there needs to be reforms in these laws that allow people to come forward after all these years. It’s impossible to defend yourself and I think it makes it very difficult, especially when the burden of proof is on them.”
behind a Jane Doe. She stood up for herself. In the end, she felt tremendously vindicated.” The jury found the stepfather, Joseph Ruffalo, a 1980s movie producer, liable for sexual battery and the intentional infliction of emotional distress. They awarded Zarini $85 million in compensatory damages and $30 million in punitives. A key to Ruffalo’s defense was the claim that he couldn’t have been an abuser because Zarini, as a little girl, told him she loved him and sent him affectionate greeting cards. The plaintiffs countered with testimony from an eminent psychiatrist that the behavior is normal in an abused child. Taylor Dordick examined the psychiatrist on the witness stand about the effect of trauma on the plaintiff. “When the jury heard that testimony, it was an eye- opener for them,” she said. “It was really powerful, and it really undercut their main defense.” She added that Zarini appreciated the result because civil court was her only hope of
GARY DORDICK
TAYLOR DORDICK
Gary Dordick noted that Ruffalo now is pleading poverty and claiming he cannot pay the judgment. “But we’re going to chase him for every penny he has.”
“And she didn’t want to hide
Case Details
DOLLAR AMOUNT
$115 million
CASE NAME
Zarini v. Gucci et al.
TYPE OF CASE
Personal injury, sexual abuse, emotional distress
COURT
Los Angeles Superior
JUDGE(S)
Michael C. Small.
PLAINTIFF LAWYERS
Dordick Law Corporation, Gary A. Dordick, Taylor B. Dordick
Tahmazian Law Firm PC, Jilbert Tahmazian; Law Offices of Rotunno & Giralamo PC, Donna A. Rotunno
DEFENSE LAWYERS
PAGE 8 | FEATURED CONTENT PROVIDED TO THE DAILY JOURNAL | JULY 2, 2026
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