According to the French workers’ union Solidaires Informatique (SI), the court wants testimony from Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot.

Guillemot and Human Resources Director Marie Derain have been summoned to testify at the trial of three former Ubisoft executives accused of sexist and racist behavior. They have been summoned for the trial of Serge Hascoët, Tommy Francois, and Guillaume Patrux. Due to delays related to prosecutorial misconduct, the trial is set to begin on June 2, 2025.

Hascoët, the former creative director, and Francois, the former vice president of editorial and creative services, left the publisher in the summer of 2020 following allegations of widespread abuse, harassment, and discrimination within Ubisoft, including against the two executives. Five former Ubisoft executives were arrested by French police in 2023 following a year-long investigation into sexual harassment within the company. According to a statement, Guillemot and Derain were summoned to address the systemic harassment at Ubisoft.

SI wrote, “Beyond the personal responsibility of these three executives, this trial will highlight Ubisoft’s responsibility in setting up a system aimed at keeping harassers in place while silencing their victims. As Mr. Beckers indicated during the March hearing, ‘This case is broader and involves many more people, both among the victims and the defendants.’ The issue is not a few individual actions, but rather a well-oiled mechanism of insularity, work organization, and management that allowed this violence to continue within the company for years.” One of the defendants’ lawyers said, “Ubisoft is the ghost of the case.”

Ubisoft: “It’s Not True!”

However, Ubisoft contacted GamesIndustry to deny that Guillemot and Derain were summoned to court: “Unfounded reports have emerged in recent days alleging that Ubisoft, Yves Guillemot, and a member of Ubisoft’s HR team were served with a direct summons to appear before the 15th Criminal Chamber of the Bobigny Court. We categorically deny these claims. Neither Ubisoft, Yves, nor anyone from our HR team are parties to these proceedings. We have fully cooperated with the authorities in this case, and out of respect for the judicial process, we will not comment further on the matter,” Ubisoft wrote.

But if they deny it this vehemently, it’s probably true…

Source: Gamesindustry, SI