Valerie Harper sued for having cancer, not disclosing
 

Valerie Harper, star of Rhoda and Dancing with the Stars participant, has cancer. In January of last year, doctors told her that her lung cancer had progressed to her brain and that she had months to live. As a result of this updated diagnosis, she dropped out of the Broadway production she had contractually agreed to perform in, Looped.

Harper sued for payment even though she had dropped out. The playwright, Lombardo, has filed a counterclaim in the amount of $2 million: $500,000 in lost revenue, and an additional $1.5 million because she knowingly withheld the information that she had cancer.

The best source I've found:
http://www.nydailynews.com/entertain...icle-1.1770673

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So, the Americans with Disabilities Act makes it pretty clear that you can't discriminate based on health concerns like cancer. I'm not sure why Lombardo thinks Harper was required to disclose her ill health.

Suing an elderly woman with cancer is not a good way to make friends, that's for sure. The move is not being received favorably.

SHE sued FIRST to try and get money for work she didn't perform. This is a countersuit. Also, Valerie Harper isn't known for being the sanest person in the entertainment world.

Could be something in her contract that stipulated she inform her employer about any long-term illness.

Right. That (unfortunately) happened to my godsister.

Though what would lead her to sue for compensation for work she didn't/couldn't do?

Again, depends on what the contract says but my instinct based on past performance is she's a little too big for her britches.

Lombardo gives a brief interview about the situation here. He seems to be blaming everything on Harper's husband.

Would have to read the contract to have a real opinion, but at first glance, it would seem that the non-disclosure of a material fact which renders performance impossible could be a bad thing.

Agreed.

I've acted in a few independent films, and for two of them, I had to disclose any health issues that could potentially lead to me not being able to fulfill my contract(s). In one of them, not being able to show up for my shoot dates would have led to wasted money in equipment rentals and paychecks for crew (most of the crew/cast are on deferred payment should the film get distributed, but there were some personnel costs related to equipment usage).

I imagine for a broadway show, especially one that's developed/produced around the notoriety of the main actor/actress, there's a huge potential for large financial losses should someone not be able to perform. (If you watch Glee, this week's episode dealt with something similar.)

But that could be a defense to the claim rather than the basis for a counterclaim, right?

I was commenting on the claim. I couldn't tell you what the counterclaim might be. I can't even imagine what a viable counterclaim would be with the facts we know about.

It sounds like it's a counterclaim that she breached the contract through some misrepresentation regarding her health.

Doh.. I wasn't remembering what happened and went back and reread. My brain was putting the parties on opposite sides of the v.