Can a place of employment legally ask you to sign away your rights to claim sexual harassment?

I have a suspicion that such a provision (I believe we are talking US law here, correct me if I'm wrong) may be in breach of the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1991. In terms of case law, the NJ Supreme Court in Schmidt v. Smith, 155 NJ 44, 713 A.2d 1014, 1998 NJ LEXIS 601 (New Jersey Supreme Court, June 15, 1998) voided a sexual harassment exclusion term in employer's liability policy. Based on the above, I'd say that your friend has a good chance of fighting such a provision in court. She will need a decent lawyer to fight the case, but the law is definitely on her side - the provision seems to be just trying to pass the buck in any given case, not just sexual harassment.