(Reuters) - Herman Cain, who is seeking the Republican presidential nomination, has hired a high-profile defamation lawyer to keep an eye on the sexual harassment accusations made public by two women this week.
Atlanta attorney Lin Wood told Reuters Thursday he was not hired to scare, intimidate or threaten anyone from making statements, but to monitor the accusations against Cain and respond accordingly.
Wood, a top libel and defamation lawyer, was hired on Monday morning when it became clear that Sharon Bialek was about to become the first of four women alleging inappropriate behavior by Cain to go public with her accusations.
"I would certainly at some point and time give him my legal evaluation of whether any of these particular statements are potentially actionable," Wood said. "But I was not hired to run out and file a lawsuit against anybody."
