After several rounds of accusations caused by the firing of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. marketing executive Julie Roehm, all sides agreed Monday that they would drop lawsuits against each other.
Roehm admitted that allegations she made against Wal-Mart chief executive officer H. Lee Scott and Irwin Jacobs, ceo of Jacobs Trading in Plymouth, Minn., one of Wal-Mart’s suppliers, were inaccurate. Jacobs said he would withdraw a defamation suit he filed against Roehm.
Wal-Mart dismissed Roehm in December 2006 after less than a year on the job, accusing her of conducting an extramarital affair with a subordinate and accepting restaurant meals and other gifts from DraftFCB, an advertising agency bidding for Wal-Mart’s $500 million account. Wal-Mart dropped Draft after firing Roehm, who denied the allegations.
Roehm had accused Wal-Mart of discrimination and breach of contract. She also charged in a countersuit that Scott received preferential prices on yachts and gems from Jacobs in exchange for funneling Wal-Mart business to Jacobs Trading.
In August, a Michigan state judge dismissed Roehm’s suit, saying her employment contract bound her to sue the $345 billion retailer in Arkansas, where the company has its headquarters.
Roehm said she will not receive any settlement money from Wal-Mart, would not refile the claim and won’t pursue further action against the company. Wal-Mart will drop its lawsuit against her.
Roehm’s “decision was influenced by the recent exchange of information between her lawyers and those for Wal-Mart and Irwin Jacobs, which explained the inaccuracy of certain allegations included in her legal filing, specifically allegations about Lee Scott and Mr. Jacobs,” her lawyers said in a statement.
Roehm said in the statement “the lawsuit…has become more difficult and financially draining than I ever imagined.”
Jacobs said: “I am pleased that Julie Roehm has finally come to her senses and has publicly admitted that the allegations she alleged in her lawsuit against Wal-Mart Stores regarding my business and personal relationship with Lee Scott were totally untrue.”