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Activision Blizzard recently petitioned the court to pause the lawsuit against it from the state of California over claims of ethics violations, but a judge has rejected the publisher’s request.
Judge Timothy Patrick Dillion from Los Angeles County has rejected the petition less than a week after Activision Blizzard filed for it, according to GI.biz. The Call of Duty and Warcraft company said the lawsuit from California’s Department of Fair Employment and Housing should be paused amid reports about potential ethics violations.
Attorneys on California’s case also apparently did work on a federal inquiry into Activision Blizzard from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. This presented an opportunity for Activision Blizzard to request a stay in the case until more facts could come to light.
Activision Blizzard previously announced an $18 million settlement deal with the EEOC to create a fund to “compensate and make amends” to those affected. California’s DFEH objected to the terms of the settlement and the EEOC responded by revealing that two lawyers who worked the federal case also helped with the state case, demonstrating what it believed was a conflict of interest, In .
The two lawyers in question were replaced by the DFEH, but Activision Blizzard still attempted to have the case paused. That request is now rejected, though the judge did not explain why.
GameSpot has followed up with Activision Blizzard in an attempt to get more details.
In another development, Activision Blizzard’s Frances Townsend–who herself has generated controversy over the ongoing case–released a statement recently that detailed the various measures that the company is taking to improve its corporate culture. She also revealed that 20 staffers were “exited” as part of the investigations, and 20 more faced disciplinary actions.
It remains to be seen what impact these moves may have on Activision Blizzard’s future workplace culture. Some of its studios, including Blizzard, have been removing inappropriate references to items and former employee names in some games, including World of Warcraft.
As part of the $18 million settlement fund, Activision Blizzard denied any wrongdoing, but agreed to this settlement in any event to avoid any “expense, distraction, and possible litigation.”
In related news, Blizzard has revealed the new name for Overwatch’s McCree, who was named after a developer who was ousted from the company. For more, check out a timeline of all the key events in the Activision Blizzard lawsuit case.
