The acrimonious legal dispute between Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford and former Gearbox general counsel Wade Callender has been settled. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the settlement comes roughly a month after Callender filed a motion for contempt and requested that Gearbox face sanctions for "discovery abuse" for failing to produce court-ordered documents. The judge in the matter found the filing "sufficient" to order a hearing, scheduled for September 25, "to determine whether Gearbox Software LLC should be held in contempt and sanctioned for failure to comply."
Gearbox and Callender launched their lawsuits against each other in late 2018. Callender alleged that Gearbox and Pitchford repeatedly failed to pay him for services rendered and ultimately forced him out of the company, while Gearbox claims that it covered a loans and personal legal fees for Callender, and that he "abused" a corporate credit card on unapproved expenses.
But there was an ugly personal edge to the allegations as well: Gearbox claimed Callender misused his corporate American Express card "trying to get six-pack abs," while Callender made even more salacious accusations about Pitchford, including that he "siphoned Gearbox profits" to pay for "Peacock Parties," in which "adult men have reportedly exposed themselves to minors."
That's all behind them now, though. Shortly before the contempt hearing was scheduled to take place, Pitchford and Callender filed for their respective cases to be dismissed with prejudice, saying that they "have resolved all claims between them." Each side will be responsible for its own legal costs.
"Upon review of all the evidence in the case, it was of the opinion of counsel that the evidence exonerated Randy Pitchford from the allegations against him; all misunderstandings between the parties have been corrected, and apologies were exchanged," the dismissal statement in the filing says. "Because the parties are mutually bound by confidentiality, no additional statements will be forthcoming."
The conclusion of this lawsuit isn't the end of Pitchford's legal troubles. He, Gearbox, and Valve were recently sued by composer Bobby Prince over the use of his music in Duke Nukem 3D: 20th Anniversary World Tour. Callender doesn't appear to be faring much better: He was recently hired, somewhat ironically, as general counsel for the National Rifle Association.
