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Calif. judge apologizes, pays $100,000 to software mogul
2008-05-01
In an unusual act of contrition, a state court judge has publicly apologized and agreed to pay $100,000 to Silicon Valley billionaire Tom Siebel for besmirching him in a lawsuit she filed as an attorney more than a decade ago. "I write to express my sincere regret for pursuing claims against you that were determined to be without merit," San Mateo Superior Court Judge Carol Mittlesteadt wrote in an apology to Siebel that was released Thursday. Mittlesteadt, who was appointed to the bench in 1998, also acknowledged her actions "may have caused substantial expense and inconvenience, and damage to (Siebel's) reputation and good name." The apology was part of a settlement that ends a 12-year legal odyssey that began after business software maker Siebel Systems Inc. fired its top sales representative, Debra Christoffers. Representing Christoffers, Mittlesteadt filed a wrongful termination and sex discrimination lawsuit against Siebel as well as the company. A court ruled the charges against Siebel were unfounded. Siebel, who is worth an estimated $1.9 billion, hopes the judge's public penitence teaches lawyers not to fabricate claims against wealthy individuals or large companies in hopes of extracting a large settlement. He said in an interview that he's surprised Mittlesteadt is a judge. "I think it's a commentary on our system of jurisprudence," he said. "I am not sure who is watching the hen house here." Voters have re-elected Mittlesteadt twice. Her current term expires in 2012. "I deeply regret that Mr. Siebel believes that I am the kind of legal professional that I have spent over 30 years striving not to be," Mittlesteadt said in a statement issued separately from her apology. Siebel said he viewed Christoffers' complaint as a veiled extortion attempt. "I was trying to set an example," Siebel said. "This was a single person's effort at tort reform." Siebel plans to donate Mittlesteadt's payment to Stanford University programs devoted to legal ethics. Siebel Systems, formerly based in San Mateo, was sold to Oracle Corp. for $6.1 billion in 2006. Mittlesteadt said her conflict with Siebel taught her "you ultimately cannot control your reputation with those who do not know you." She also urged "all attorneys to continue representing your clients zealously within the bounds of the law." When she filed the suit, Siebel Systems was preparing an initial public offering of stock, meaning the company had to disclose the potential legal liability and risk rattling investors. Determined to prove the allegations against him were wrong, Siebel fought the lawsuit and prevailed on all the claims against him. A jury concluded that Siebel Systems legitimately fired Christoffers because it was dissatisfied with her performance but that it still owed Christoffers for unpaid sales commissions. After both sides appealed, the company ultimately paid more than $351,000 to settle that part of the case while Christoffers agreed to pay nearly $52,000 to cover Siebel Systems' legal costs. After Mittlesteadt was appointed as a judge, Siebel personally sued her and her associate, E. Rick Buell II, for malicious prosecution. That battle went all the way to the California Supreme Court, which in July 2007 upheld an earlier ruling that the lawsuit against Siebel contained meritless allegations. Buell publicly apologized last October without making a monetary settlement.
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