Try as he might, Mark Hurd can’t escape the aftermath of a sexual harassment scandal that happened nearly a year and a half ago.
Hurd, who currently is president at Oracle Corp., resigned from his position as CEO of Hewlett-Packard Co. (HP) in August 2010 amid allegations that he sexually harassed Jodie Fisher, an HP marketing consultant and former reality TV star. HP investigated Hurd and found that he had falsified expense reports amounting to nearly $20,000 to try to cover up his personal relationship with Fisher.
Hurd’s controversial departure from HP included a $12.2 million severance package and almost $35 million in vested stock, leading one shareholder to file a lawsuit seeking HP’s records related to the former CEO’s resignation and severance package.
One document, a letter that celebrity lawyer Gloria Allred sent to HP about Hurd’s alleged sexual advances toward Fisher, her client, has remained under seal throughout the case after Hurd fought to keep it private. But last week, Delaware Supreme Court Justice Carolyn Berger ruled that although Allred’s letter contains “embarrassing detail about Hurd’s behavior,” it should be unsealed.
The eight-page letter, which Allred sent in June 2010 and which prompted HP to investigate Hurd, includes specific information about Fisher’s claims of harassment against Hurd. Read Thomson Reuters for more details.
