Done Deal: Ellen Pao doesn't have to pay Kleiner Perkins' legal fees
Pao won't have to pay nearly $276,000 in legal fees as the venture capital firm holds firm on not seeking repayment if she opted not to appeal.
Ellen Pao will not be required to pay a Silicon Valley venture capital firm nearly $276,000 in legal fees after deciding not to appeal the loss of her high-profile gender-discrimination case, her spokeswoman said Wednesday.
Pao said earlier this month that she would pay the court-ordered fee after a jury rejected her claims of gender discrimination and retaliation against former employer Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. Pao said she was "moving on" after three years of litigation because it took a toll on her family and became too expensive to continue.
After Pao formally filed her intent not to appeal in San Francisco Superior Court on September 17, Kleiner Perkins filed a court document the next day that said the firm had "accepted payment or performance other than that specified in the judgment in full satisfaction of the judgment."
In other words, Kleiner Perkins kept its word that it would waive its legal fees should Pao choose not to appeal, her spokeswoman said. A Kleiner Perkins spokeswoman declined to comment Wednesday.
Pao, formerly a junior partner at the venture capital firm, sued her former employer in 2012, alleging she was subjected to gender discrimination and retaliation for about six years after complaining about the conduct of a male colleague who she said pressured her into a brief affair in 2006. A San Francisco jury rejected Pao's complaint in March
The filing by Kleiner essentially ends the legal fight that sparked discussions about gender and racial disparities throughout the tech industry. It has led tech heavyweights, including Apple, Facebook and Google, to vow change. Although she lost her $16 million lawsuit, Pao said the case will shape the culture of the industry for years to come.