“What is happening to Mark Mansell is completely unacceptable,” says an employment partner at a rival firm.

Mansell, the Allen & Overy partner at the centre of the debate about non-disclosure agreements (NDA) in the wake of the Harvey Weinstein allegations, is unlikely to receive sympathy from many. He was involved in drafting the NDA between the disgraced movie producer’s company and former assistant Zelda Perkins in 1998, which has since been criticised for having such onerous terms.