Whistleblower settlement announced by Coke
CNN (Reuters) reports: “Coke settles lawsuit with former finance director.”
“Coca-Cola Co. said Tuesday it settled a $44.4-million lawsuit filed by a former finance director who claimed that he was fired for revealing alleged fraud and other wrongdoing at the soft drink company.”
“The world’s largest soft drink maker said it had agreed to pay Matthew Whitley $100,000 and severance in connection with his dismissal earlier this year. The company also said it would pay $300,000 of Whitley’s legal fees.”
“Coca-Cola and Whitley will agree to continue cooperating with federal investigators and the SEC as part of the settlement.”
Whoah–a $44.4 million lawsuit! Why do reporters cite these demand figures as if they were meaningful measures of the value of a lawsuit? A plaintiff can ask for the moon, but it doesn’t mean squat.
This sounds like a fairly large settlement, but the guy was probably making 6 figures plus, so it really amounts to only a partial year’s pay.
Why was it disclosed and not settled confidentially, like most employment lawsuits? Probably at the insistence of the SEC. Similarly, once the EEOC is involved in litigation, confidential settlements are disallowed by the agency, and press releases follow settlement. Otherwise, employers insist on confidentiality, and plaintiffs typically agree, preferring bucks to fame.
