Date: May 8, 2025

The New York Times reported on multiple allegations of sexual harassment against a vice president at the Appraisal Institute, an organization that influences U.S. property values and helps to set certification standards across the U.S. TELG client Cynthia Chance filed a lawsuit that accuses AI of firing her as its CEO after she reported harassment by VP Craig Steinley against her and other women at AI. Ms. Chance is represented by TELG principal Anita Mazumdar Chambers.

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The organization that influences how much houses and commercial buildings are worth in the United States privately paid one woman $412,000 to settle a sexual harassment claim and fielded similar complaints from at least seven other women that have swirled within the group over the last decade, The New York Times has found.

All the harassment accusations inside the Appraisal Institute are against one man — Craig Steinley, 64, a former president and the current vice president of the trade group, who denied the allegations.

The Appraisal Institute, which produces the certification materials and fills the state boards that regulate the estimated 70,000 real estate appraisers working in all 50 states, did not respond directly to questions about the allegations.

[…]

The women, several of whom asked for anonymity for fear of retaliation, said Mr. Steinley’s behavior often turned physical — an unwanted touch on the leg, a hug that lasted too long. Three women said Mr. Steinley groped their buttocks, according to interviews and a review of a letter sent from one woman’s lawyers to the Appraisal Institute.

One of the accusations was made public on Thursday, when Cindy Chance, the group’s former chief executive, sued the Chicago-based group for wrongful termination in Illinois state court. Ms. Chance, 59, who was fired last year, said Mr. Steinley groped her buttocks without her consent, made lewd comments about her body and referred to her as his “girlfriend,” according to her lawsuit.

The Appraisal Institute and Mr. Steinley did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the lawsuit on Thursday.

“He manipulates and controls people through sexual harassment,” Ms. Chance said of Mr. Steinley in an interview. Ms. Chance also confirmed that, in her role as chief executive, she approved the confidential six-figure settlement that was paid to another woman who had worked at the trade group and had filed sexual harassment claims against both Mr. Steinley and the organization.

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