A former lawyer with California’s Division of Honest Employment and Housing has accused Governor Gavin Newsom of interfering with the company’s in opposition to Activision Blizzard. In response to an e mail seen by , DFEH assistant chief counsel Melanie Proctor mentioned Tuesday she was resigning her place to protest the abrupt firing of Janette Wipper, the watchdog’s chief counsel.
“The Workplace of the Governor repeatedly demanded advance discover of litigation technique and of subsequent steps within the litigation,” Proctor writes in her resignation. “As we continued to win in state courtroom, this interference elevated, mimicking the pursuits of Activision’s counsel.” Proctor alleges Wipper was “abruptly terminated” for making an attempt to guard the DFEH’s independence. In response to the e-mail, the previous chief counsel is contemplating “all avenues of authorized recourse,” together with a declare beneath California’s Whistleblower Safety Act.
We’ve reached out to the Workplace of Governor Newsom for remark.
Information of the resignation comes little greater than two weeks after a federal choose ordered Activision Blizzard to to settle a US Equal Alternative Fee lawsuit accusing the writer of fostering a discriminatory office. Earlier than that grievance was filed, California’s honest employment company its personal lawsuit in opposition to Activision Blizzard following a two-year investigation into sexual harassment allegations on the writer. The DFEH case is at the moment scheduled to go to trial in February 2023, however the allegations put ahead by Proctor are prone to increase questions concerning the final destiny of the lawsuit.
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