Sapphire Gentlemen’s Club lawsuits fall into four main categories: wage and misclassification claims by dancers, sex trafficking and forced prostitution suits, workplace abuse cases, and a newer wave of civil actions filed against the club’s New York locations. Litigation against the Las Vegas venue and its New York affiliates has run for more than 15 years and has produced binding rulings in Nevada state and federal court, along with pending cases in Manhattan.
Wage and Worker Misclassification Cases
The longest-running litigation against Sapphire concerns its practice of treating dancers as independent contractors rather than employees. In 2009, exotic dancers at the Las Vegas club filed a putative class action alleging they had been denied minimum wage and overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act.1Law360. World’s Largest Strip Club Hit With Wage and Hour Suit
The case reached the Nevada Supreme Court, which ruled unanimously in October 2014 that Sapphire’s roughly 6,600 performers were employees entitled to minimum wage. In Terry v. Sapphire Gentlemen’s Club, Justice Kristina Pickering wrote that contract language labeling dancers as contractors could not override the actual working relationship.2Courthouse News Service. Thousands of Strippers Now Vegas Employees Applying the FLSA’s “economic realities” test, the court found Sapphire’s control was extensive: the club dictated music, enforced rules about movement and stage performance, required six-hour minimum shifts, and charged fees to dancers who refused to go on stage.3Vlex. Terry v. Sapphire Gentlemen’s Club, 336 P.3d 951 The court noted that dancers were “undeniably integral” to a business calling itself the world’s largest strip club.4Business Insurance. Court Rules Vegas Exotic Dancers Are Due Workers’ Comp, Less Skimpy Pay The Terry case itself settled in 2016.5Forbes. Many Americans Can’t Afford Access to Justice. Not So for the World’s Largest Strip Club
The Nevada Legislature responded quickly. Senate Bill 224, signed by Governor Brian Sandoval on June 2, 2015, created a “conclusive presumption” of independent-contractor status for state wage claims when certain criteria are met, and applied to any ongoing dispute.6Nevada Bar. Independent Contractor Status Under Nevada Law7Littler Mendelson. Nevada Establishes Conclusive Presumption of Independent Contractor Status The statute did not touch the FLSA, so federal wage claims against Sapphire kept moving.
Dancer Corissa Jones filed one such federal case in 2015. On September 6, 2019, U.S. District Judge Richard F. Boulware II held that Sapphire’s dancers are employees under the FLSA and found the club, its principal David Michael Talla, and club manager Peter Feinstein individually liable. The judge left the question of whether the violations were “willful” for trial and dismissed more than 100 opt-in plaintiffs who had signed enforceable arbitration agreements.5Forbes. Many Americans Can’t Afford Access to Justice. Not So for the World’s Largest Strip Club
Sex Trafficking and Forced Prostitution Claims
A separate set of lawsuits accuses Sapphire of enabling sex trafficking. In 2021, three plaintiffs, identified as Jane Doe #1, Jane Doe #2, and Angela Williams, filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada against Sapphire, the Chicken Ranch brothel in Pahrump, hip-hop producer Jamal Rashid (known as Mally Mall), and other alleged traffickers, invoking the Thirteenth Amendment and the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act.8National Center on Sexual Exploitation. Sex Trafficking Survivors’ Claims to Proceed Against World’s Biggest Gentlemen’s Club and Nevada Brothel
Jane Doe #2 alleged she was coerced into commercial sex acts at Sapphire through a system of fees and mandatory tipping that kept her in debt to the club. In July 2022, U.S. District Judge Andrew Gordon dismissed the Thirteenth Amendment claims but allowed her trafficking claim against Sapphire to proceed, along with Jane Doe #1’s claim that she was locked inside the Chicken Ranch and forced to perform sex acts. As to Sapphire, the court permitted the allegation that the club knew Jane Doe #2 was being sexually assaulted by customers and failed to act despite having surveillance footage of the incidents.9Pahrump Valley Times. Claims Dismissed in Lawsuit Targeting Nevada’s Sex Industry The parties were in discovery as of September 2022, with no trial date set. Rashid failed to respond, and default was entered against him and his business entities.8National Center on Sexual Exploitation. Sex Trafficking Survivors’ Claims to Proceed Against World’s Biggest Gentlemen’s Club and Nevada Brothel
New York Lawsuits Against Sapphire
Sapphire’s New York locations have drawn their own suits. In June 2022, former dancers Margaret O’Sullivan and Stephanie Krauel filed a $25 million lawsuit in Manhattan Supreme Court alleging the West 39th Street club operated as a prostitution ring, with hosts acting as pimps who coerced dancers into performing sex acts on patrons and sometimes supplied cocaine and condoms.10New York Daily News. Ex-Strippers Sue Sapphire Gentlemen’s Club Alleging Prostitution Ring The complaint also described sexual and physical assaults, illegal drug use, underage drinking, and wage theft through misclassification, pay-to-play policies, and tip stealing. Represented by Jon Norinsberg of Joseph & Norinsberg LLC, the plaintiffs sought $10 million in compensatory damages, $15 million in punitive damages, and class-action status.11KTNV. Lawsuit Against Sapphire Gentleman’s Club Alleges Forced Prostitution, Sexual Harassment and Sex Trafficking
In November 2025, former dancer turned attorney Christine DeMaria filed a $10 million suit in Manhattan Supreme Court against Sapphire 60, the Upper East Side location, alleging rape, sexual assault, sex trafficking, and unlawful false imprisonment. Three other former dancers joined the complaint. A representative for Sapphire 60 responded that the club first learned of DeMaria’s claims when the suit was filed and that the complaint “provides no details of what she actually claims happened a decade ago at the club.”12New York Post. Former NYC Stripper Files Civil Suits Against Clubs, Managers DeMaria, represented by attorney Megan Goddard, filed related suits against Vivid Cabaret, Hoops Cabaret, and Gossip. Both New York cases remain pending.
Workplace Abuse Ruling in Russo v. SHAC LLC
Former Sapphire employee Nadine Russo alleged that a manager named John Lee subjected her to a pattern of sexually explicit demands and retaliation. She sued Sapphire (operated as SHAC LLC, though one filing identifies the entity as SHAG LLC), Lee, and principals Peter Feinstein and David Michael Talla.13FindLaw. Russo v. SHAC LLC, No. 82197-COA
In November 2021, the Nevada Court of Appeals reversed the dismissal of several of Russo’s claims. The court reinstated her intentional infliction of emotional distress claim against Lee and the club, holding that Lee’s alleged conduct was a “continuous course of conduct” rather than a series of isolated incidents for statute-of-limitations purposes. The court also revived a negligent training, supervision, and retention claim against Sapphire, Feinstein, and Talla, finding that questions remained about whether Lee’s behavior was “reasonably foreseeable” to ownership.14Vlex. Russo v. SHAC LLC, No. 82197-COA The dismissal of Russo’s tortious constructive discharge claim was upheld because she had not first filed with the appropriate administrative agency. The Nevada Supreme Court entered a stipulated dismissal in November 2022, with each side bearing its own costs.15FindLaw. SHAG LLC v. Russo, Docket No. 85417
Who Owns and Runs Sapphire
The Las Vegas club spans more than 100,000 square feet and is operated by SHAC LLC. David Michael Talla has been identified in federal court filings as the principal of the entity, and Peter Feinstein has been described as the managing partner responsible for day-to-day operations.5Forbes. Many Americans Can’t Afford Access to Justice. Not So for the World’s Largest Strip Club Both have been named individually in multiple suits and were held personally liable for FLSA violations in the 2019 Jones ruling.