California lawyer quits, says governor ‘interfered’ in Activision suit

A lawyer with California’s Department of Fair Housing and Employment has resigned after accusing Gov. Gavin Newsom of interfering with the state’s Activision Blizzard lawsuit, according to a Bloomberg report.

Melanie Proctor worked as DFEH’s assistant chief counsel and informed staff Tuesday night that she had resigned after Janette Wipper (her boss) was fired, Bloomberg reports. Court documents filed April 5 show that the lawyers quit Activision Blizzard earlier this month. Bloomberg received confirmation from a representative that Proctor has resigned while Wipper had been fired. Bloomberg reported that Bloomberg has confirmed the confirmation of two lawyers from Activision Blizzard. The fate of the lawsuit is now uncertain.

Bloomberg reports that Proctor told staff that Newsom “began to interfere” with the Activision Blizzard lawsuit, and that his interference began “mimicking the interests of Activision’s counsel.” Wipper was fired after “attempting to protect” the DFEH’s investigation, Bloomberg said. A spokesperson for Wipper told Bloomberg she’s “evaluating all avenues of legal recourse including a claim under the California Whistleblower Protection Act.”

The DFEH told Polygon that it does not comment on “personnel matters,” and said that the department will “continue to vigorously enforce California’s civil rights and fair housing laws.” Polygon has also reached out to Newsom’s press office, but did not hear back before publication time.

After a two year investigation into widespread sexism at Call of Duty and Overwatch publishers, the agency filed the suit in July 2021. The explosive lawsuit accused the company of “constant sexual harassment” from what it described as a “frat boy” culture at Activision Blizzard. The company has been the subject of numerous lawsuits since then, as well as employee walkouts. Employees have also called for CEO Bobby Kotick to resign following a Wall Street Journal report that uncovered the extent of Kotick’s knowledge of employee misconduct.

Activision Blizzard resolved another lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in September for $18 millions. DFEH tried intervene to stop the settlement but a judge turned down that request earlier in this year.

Microsoft’s January announcement of its intent to buy Activision Blizzard for $68.7billion was a historic move that will be scrutinized by regulators at the Federal Trade Commission. The Wall Street Journal reported that Bobby Kotick, chief executive of Microsoft, is being investigated by both the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Department of Justice for possible insider trading.