If this is true, California Governor Gavin Newsom may have dug a political trench around himself…

Two lawyers quit the case (the lawsuit filed last July by the DFEH, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing) after learning that Newsom had stepped in to support the publisher. Bloomberg reports that the state firm’s chief counsel, Janette Wipper, was fired by the governor, prompting her assistant, Melanie Proctor, to quit in protest. The two attorneys stepped down from the case in April, but neither has given an official explanation.

Proctor wrote in an email sent to staffers that Newsom and her office had begun to interfere with the proceedings. “The Office of the Governor repeatedly demanded advance notice of litigation strategy and of next steps in the litigation. As we continued to win in state court, this interference increased, mimicking the interests of Activision‘s counsel,” she wrote. According to him, Wipper was trying to defend the independence of DFEH but was suddenly fired, and that’s why she quit. “Justice should be administered equally, not favouring those with political influence,” Proctor added.

Wipper’s spokesman said she was “evaluating all avenues of legal recourse including a claim under the California Whistleblower Protection Act,” meaning she could use the law to bring her lawsuit against the state or even Newsom himself (i.e. the publishing giant that Microsoft is seeking to acquire could spark a severe legal battle if that happens…). We don’t know whether the DFEH lawsuit against Activision Blizzard will be affected by these events, as it’s scheduled to go to trial in February 2023. Microsoft might get the go-ahead for the acquisition by then, although the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) might block it.

It is getting despondent, but we have one question at the end. What the hell does Newsom want? What does it have to do with the games industry? Shouldn’t he be more concerned with running California itself…?

Source: VGC