Just one month after infamously being taken off air following news of their scandalous affair, T.J. Holmes and Amy Robach are reportedly hired lawyers in what could become an explosive lawsuit against ABC. According to reports, it was initially claimed that executives at the network were taking the pair off air to allow the media attention to die down after the news anchors made endless headlines for their romance, which allegedly began while they were still married to separate partners.
But according to TMZ, both Amy and T.J. have been left in the dark about their future at the company, particularly because they haven’t heard anything regarding their potential return date and whether the investigation ABC was conducting had concluded or not. Sources tell the news outlet that T.J. has hired legal powerhouse Eric George while Amy is being represented by Andrew Brettler who plans to argue whether race could have played a part in their departure if ABC decides to fire them.
One of the arguments that will be made to the network is whether the decision to fire two consenting adults would also be the case if both of them were white. Furthermore, their attorneys will also want to question ABC if this would be the first time they had fired a black and white news anchor, and if so, their firing from “Good Morning America” could result in a hefty payout from the network.
Not to mention that if the pair are fired, they could also sue for damages caused by ABC firing them, which sources say they could argue played a part in their reputation being tarnished.
As we previously reported, T.J. and Amy’s affair became public news in late November; but what was probably more shocking was that both anchors were still married when their relationship first began, according to reports.
Given the many paparazzi photos that have surfaced of the pair since being taken off air, it’s fair to assume that the pair are very much still together, though it’s looking rather evident at this point that there’s a chance they won’t be returning back to “GMA3.”
Earlier this month, we reported how producers of the morning show were said to have started looking for replacements in case T.J. and Amy were not being brought back following the scandal.
Insiders via Radar Online asserted that Jenna Bush Hager and Carson Daly were both being eyed to fill in for them, meaning the latter would leave his position at TODAY if an offer was to be made.
“It would be a step up for Jenna — she’s extremely ambitious — and word is Carson’s ready for a change,” the source said. “T.J. and Amy’s situation creates a big headache and bosses have an even bigger task — they’ve got to discreetly find out which talent is logistically poachable while weighting the best potential fit. But first, ABC has to decide what to do with Amy and T.J.”