Woman's lawsuits say sci-fi author Neil Gaiman repeatedly sexually assaulted her

Neil Gaiman faces civil lawsuits for sexual assault allegations, impacting his career and reputation in publishing and entertainment.

A woman from New Zealand has filed three civil lawsuits against best-selling British author Neil Gaiman and his wife, accusing Gaiman of repeatedly sexually assaulting her while she was working as the couple's babysitter and nanny.

The victim filed the lawsuits in federal court in Wisconsin, Massachusetts and New York on Monday (February 3, 2025).

The victim identified herself in an interview with New York Magazine, which published an article in January detailing allegations of assault, abuse and coercion levelled by eight women.

She alleges in the lawsuits that she was homeless and living on a beach when she met Palmer in Auckland, New Zealand, in 2020. She was 22 years old at the time.

According to the lawsuits, Mr. Gaiman's wife, Amanda Palmer, invited the victim to the couple's home on Waiheke Island. The later began running errands for the couple, babysitting their son and helping with chores, eventually becoming the couple's nanny.

Mr. Gaiman first sexually assaulted her the night they met in February 2022, according to the lawsuit. The assaults continued but she kept working for the couple because she was broke and homeless and Mr. Gaiman had told her he would help her writing career, according to the lawsuits.

When she told Ms. Palmer about the assaults, Ms. Palmer told her that more than a dozen women had told her in the past that Mr. Gaiman had sexually abused them, according to the lawsuits.