Sheena Goodyear · CBC Radio

· Posted: Apr 02, 2026 5:21 PM EDT | Last Updated: April 2

LISTEN | Full interview with sexual harassment lawyer Megan Thomas :

At first, sexual harassment lawyer Megan Thomas just wanted to put up a modest ad above a garbage can in the back of a New York airport terminal to advertise her law firm's services.

It read: “When HR called it harmless flirting … we called it exhibit A."

But when the airport authority rejected the ad copy and asked her to tone it down, she filed a lawsuit claiming her free speech rights under the U.S. constitution had been violated.

A judge agreed, and now her copy is on display on two large ads at New York's Syracuse Hancock International Airport. One is so massive it takes up two walls, floor to ceiling. 

"Both of them are right in the main part of the airport," Thomas told As It Happens host Nil Köksal. "Everyone can see them right upon coming in."

The Syracuse Regional Airport Authority (SRAA) called the ruling "unfortunate."

Sexual harassment common on work trips: lawyer

Thomas says she wanted to run an ad in the airport because many of her clients tell her they've experienced sexual harassment on work trips, and that they didn't know where to turn for help.

"For people who might be experiencing sexual harassment or who know others who have, I want them to feel empowered," she said. "So I thought this is the perfect place for me."

At first, she says her dealings with the SRAA were smooth. She toured the facilities and signed a contract to display a single ad, 1.7 metres by 76 centimetres, starting on Aug. 1, 2025.

"No one batted an eye," she said. "I had no inkling that this would be an issue."

Then the SRAA informed her the tagline went too far.

"They wanted me to 'soften the language,'" Thomas said. "I thought that it was problematic that they were trying to micromanage how I was presenting my ad, when again, I don't think they do that for anyone else."

Judge denies ad copy is misleading, disparaging 

According to court documents, the airport authority stated the ad broke its rules prohibiting “inappropriate, immoral, offensive, or objectionable” content, citing a "potential for disruption presented by this type of accusatory and inaccurate statement."

After some back and forth, Thomas decided to file legal action for breach of contract and a violation of her First Amendment rights. She argued that nothing in the ad copy violated the airport authority's rules. 

"The law is very clear," she said. "You cannot discriminate on the basis of viewpoint in a public space like the airport."

Two weeks later, the SRAA updated its regulations around ad copy to prohibit ads that “disparage" or are “false, misleading, or deceptive.”

Once again, it refused to run the ad, arguing "the proposed slogan falsely implies that conduct considered to be ‘harmless flirting’ is necessarily actionable harassment."

The regional airport authority has called the judge's ruling 'unfortunate,' but agreed to a settlement with Thomas. (Chad Robertson Media/Shutterstock)

Judge Anthony Brindisi disagreed.

"That is nonsense," he wrote in his ruling, saying the ad copy no more misleading than a Chick-fil-A ad at the airport featuring a cow and the phrase “Chikin 4 Din Makez U Grin" that suggests “chicken dinners will always make a person happy, or that cows can speak.”

"At most, plaintiff’s tagline suggests there are situations where conduct labeled 'harmless flirting' could be, or might have been, actionable harassment," he wrote. 

"No reasonable person could believe the plaintiff is saying use of the term 'harmless flirting' automatically grants any plaintiff a valid legal claim."

Brindisi similarly rejected the SRAA's argument that the ad is "disparaging."

"The Authority repeatedly throws around the label 'disparaging,' yet says little about why, how, or of whom," he said. 

In a statement issued Tuesday, the SRAA lamented the ruling, but said the settlement “permits both parties to return focus to their core corporate purposes while preserving the authority’s ability to manage and operate the airport.”

For Thomas, her core corporate purpose to is to serve clients who have experienced sexual harassment. 

And thanks to her new ads — a 9.4-by-76 centimetre banner and a 9.5-by-2.9-metre floor-to-ceiling wall wrap — the phone is ringing off the hook.

She says her firm, Megan Thomas Law, has had to hire a new attorney and an intake specialist just to meet the demand.

"We were busy before, but now we're even busier, which is great," she said.