NBCUniversal Media LLC is seeking dismissal of many of the claims in a lawsuit brought by a former company employee who says an executive coerced him into a sexual relationship, contending that the allegations infringe on the company’s free speech.

Plaintiff Tyler Adkins, 28, filed the lawsuit against NBCUniversal and co-employer Now a Warning LLC in Los Angeles Superior Court, alleging a variety of causes of action ranging from whistleblower retaliation, assault and battery to sexual harassment and multiple state Labor Code violations.

Among the individual defendants is Chris Herzberger, NBCUniversal’s vice president of live theatricals.

“Adkins and Herzberger enjoyed a three-year, committed romantic relationship,” the NBC and Now a Warning attorneys state in their court papers filed M

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