Grace Kang has worked as an attorney specializing in intellectual property and business law for 20 years, the last 16 in the greater Los Angeles area. A graduate of Stanford Law School, she said her proudest accomplishment is being a mother.
So when police and child protective services investigators showed up at her Beverly Hills home in June 2022 after her ex-boyfriend, fellow Stanford graduate Jason Varughese, accused her of physically abusing their toddler son, Kang said she was blindsided.
Authorities quickly concluded the allegations were unfounded and found no injuries on the boy, but Kang said the ordeal traumatized both her and her 8-year-old daughter from another relationship, who was also interviewed by investigators.
“This came from out of nowhere. I was completely floored that he would do that,” Kang said of Varughese, with whom she had broken up in 2021. “It was a nightmare. I still get very upset and emotional, and it’s four years later.”
A Los Angeles County jury ultimately sided with Kang, awarding her $4.5 million after concluding Varughese falsely accused her of child abuse as part of a custody and financial dispute. The verdict is believed to be the first civil jury award in California tied to a knowingly false child abuse report under the state’s mandated reporter law.
Kang sued Varughese in August 2022, about a month after the investigations closed, alleging false reporting and intentional infliction of emotional distress. She claimed the allegations damaged her reputation within both professional circles and their shared Stanford alumni network, disrupted her work and caused lasting emotional distress.
The case eventually went to trial, with Varughese representing himself. On May 12, a jury awarded Kang $2 million for emotional distress, $1 million in punitive damages and $1.5 million tied to the false reporting claim.
Kang’s attorney, Mike Landman, said jurors were presented evidence during the weeklong trial showing Varughese, founder of the sobriety and recovery app Pink Cloud, was motivated by money when he made the allegations. According to Landman, Varughese showed “shadowy photos” to an instructor at a court-ordered parenting class, claiming they depicted bruises on the couple’s son. The instructor then contacted child protective services, triggering the investigation.
“Our position at trial was he wanted full custody because he wanted the maximum child support he could get,” Landman said. Jurors also heard testimony that Varughese was saddled with $30,000 in credit card debt, owed money to the IRS and was facing declining revenue from his subscription-based app, Landman said.
“His company was not booming and his revenue was falling,” said Landman, a former federal prosecutor now with Bird Marella LLP.
Kang said her relationship with Varughese lasted about two years and that he was not the man she initially believed him to be.
“He told me he was a successful tech CEO. He has an app. I didn’t learn until later in our relationship that he was basically living off credit cards the entire time,” Kang said.
Landman said Varughese compounded the damage by spreading the allegations among professional and social contacts, including members of the pair’s Stanford alumni network. Jurors also heard evidence that Varughese continued making allegations even after investigators found no abuse, leaving Kang fearful the accusations would never stop, Landman said.
Reached by telephone Tuesday, Varughese declined to comment.
Kang said she decided to sue after realizing no one would hold Varughese accountable for the false allegations despite the distress she said they caused her and her children.
“It was really my kids that motivated me to get justice. I’m like a mama bear. I couldn’t let him get away with it,” Kang said.
Kang seemed hopeful when asked if she believed she was going to get her $4.5 million, despite evidence presented at trial that painted a bleak picture of Varughese’s finances. But for her, she said the outcome was more about her vindication than any amount of money.
“Having this verdict rendered by a unanimous jury of 12 members of the community means everything to me,” Kang said. “The child abuse reporting system should never be exploited for personal gain.”