A former Ciena employee is suing the telecommunications giant, alleging she was fired in retaliation after she claimed that a senior executive had sexually assaulted her after a company event in Ottawa. 

The plaintiff, identified in the court records as A.B., has filed a statement of claim against the company, alleging it accepted the findings of a flawed investigation that dismissed her allegations that Steven Haley, vice-president of global supply chain, sexually assaulted her, and protected Haley from consequences. She is seeking more than $320,000 in compensation. 

The claim filed in Ottawa with the Superior Court of Justice names Ciena Canada, a network equipment software firm, as the sole defendant. The plaintiff’s identity is protected under a publication ban. Maryland-based Ciena, which employs about 9,000 people globally, has a major office in Ottawa, which is home to the company’s research and development hub.

Ciena’s presence in Ottawa dates back to its 2010 acquisition of optical networking firm Nortel. Ottawa is home to more than 20 per cent of Ciena’s total workforce, as of September 2025, with 2,000 employees. The company reported US$4.8 billion in revenue last year. 

The civil claim describes allegations related to a criminal case against Haley, whom Ottawa police charged with sexual assault in December 2025. 

None of the claims in the criminal or civil case have been tested in court, and Ciena has not yet filed a statement of defence. 

Ciena spokesperson Nicole Anderson said the company hired a third party to investigate A.B.’s allegations but the investigation “did not corroborate the claim that was raised with the company.” Anderson added that A.B.’s termination was part of broader company layoffs. “That decision was made prior to the complaint being filed.” 

According to the civil claim, the alleged assault happened on Aug. 19, 2025, following the company’s annual golf tournament in Ottawa. A.B. claims Haley, whom she had not previously met, consumed significant amounts of alcohol during the tournament and dinner that followed. Later that evening, a group of employees gathered at a colleague’s house before traveling to the Heart & Crown pub in downtown Ottawa. 

A.B., who said she had not consumed alcohol, offered to drive her colleagues to the pub. She says she ended up only driving Haley. During the 20-minute drive, she claims Haley exposed himself, touched her in a sexual manner and made explicit sexual comments. She claims she told Haley to stop, but he continued. Upon arriving at the pub, A.B. claims she immediately told several colleagues about the incident. She alleges Haley continued making advances despite colleagues’ efforts to keep him away. 

A.B. claims she reported the alleged assault to the company the next day, and to Ottawa police three days after the alleged incident. Haley was charged with sexual assault that December. His lawyer, David Anber, told The Logic in April that Haley disputed the allegations and was presumed innocent. Haley is not named as a defendant in the civil suit.

Ciena hired a third party to investigate the complaint related to the alleged assault. A.B. claims the investigation was flawed and breached Ciena’s own policies, including its code of business conduct and ethics. She claims the investigator subjected her to victim-blaming questions, such as whether she was flirting with Haley. According to the claim, the investigator told A.B. that Haley denied the allegations and said he was asleep in the car. 

The investigator concluded A.B.’s claims were unfounded, and Ciena accepted the finding. 

A.B. claims Ciena did not implement any temporary measures against Haley during the investigation, such as suspension, despite that being an option under the company’s internal policies. 

The claim alleges that Ciena’s chief legal officer met A.B. on the morning of Sept. 24, 2025, and informed her that the investigation had found that no sexual misconduct had taken place and Ciena would not take corrective action against Haley. Court documents also allege that in the same meeting, A.B. was told that she was terminated, effective immediately. 

Ciena executives told A.B. she was meant to be part of wider layoffs that happened earlier that month, the claim alleges, but the company wanted to wait for the investigation’s outcome before laying her off. A.B. also claims another executive told her the company waited to terminate her because she was on vacation when the broader layoffs were announced. The claim alleges that A.B. immediately lost access to the company’s systems and was barred from returning to the workplace, while other laid-off workers had two days to wrap up their work and clear their desks. 

A.B. argues that her dismissal was an act of corporate retaliation for reporting the sexual assault and filing a police report. Her lawyer, Julie Mouris, said her client “hopes that her action will lead to greater accountability and transparency for companies like Ciena, including meaningful enforcement of their own internal policies prohibiting sexual harassment and sexual assault, so that employees can feel confident in reporting such behaviour.” 

A.B. is seeking $220,780.07 in wrongful dismissal compensation, representing her base salary, benefits, vacation, RRSP contributions and stock entitlements, and $100,000 in damages for Ciena’s alleged bad-faith conduct.