Chapter 12 - Jason Eventually Admitted the File Was About More Than Northstar
A year into the divorce process, Jason gave a deposition related to an employment dispute with Bennett Lakeshore.
Claire’s attorneys received parts relevant to:
her.
One question:
Why did you begin maintaining records concerning Claire Bennett?
Jason answered:
“Because I believed her conduct could damage Northstar.”
Then after a pause:
“And because our marriage was failing.”
There.
Counsel asked him to explain.
“When we fought at home, she would come into meetings already angry with me.”
True sometimes.
“Did you do the same?”
“Yes.”
“Did maintaining the file give you leverage in those conflicts?”
A long pause.
“Yes.”
Claire read that word several times.
Then:
Did you ever tell Ms. Bennett you were creating the file?
“No.”
Why not?
“Because I wanted a record she couldn’t influence.”
Did you want her removed from the transaction committee?
“Yes.”
Did you believe removing her would also reduce conflict in your marriage?
“Yes.”
That was the core.
Jason had merged:
husband
and:
executive.
If Claire challenged him professionally, he experienced it personally.
If they fought personally, he treated her professional judgment as suspect.
Then he built a dossier that could change the power balance in both places.
Did he plan to take her shares?
No.
Take her inheritance?
No.
Declare her incompetent?
No.
The real mechanism was more ordinary.
Discredit.
Narrow her authority.
Create a record that made every future objection look like:
another episode.
Claire finally understood why the file frightened her so much.
It did not need to remove her from everything.
It only needed to make other people stop trusting:
May you like
her.
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