Weinstein scandal puts nondisclosure agreements in the spotlight

Harvey Weinstein. Bill O'Reilly. Roger Ailes. Bill Cosby. The Catholic church.

All were able to skirt years and sometimes decades of allegations of sexual harassment or assault through the use of settlements or contracts that included nondisclosure agreements: legal provisions that swear employees or alleged victims to secrecy.

Those cases - and especially the unfolding Weinstein scandal - have sparked criticism that the agreements allow powerful companies and individuals to stave off scrutiny and continue abusive practices. Now, there is a move afoot to place clear restrictions on their use.

Last week, a group of Weinstein Co. employees, in a letter published by the New Yorker last week, sought to be released from their signed nondisclosure agreements, or NDAs.

"We ask that