The parents of an Activision Blizzard employee who committed suicide during a company retreat in 2017 have dropped their case against the Call of Duty publisher.
As reported by Axios, Paul and Janet Moynihan filed to dismiss the lawsuit “with prejudice” on May 6, meaning that the suit cannot be filed again. No explanation for the request was given, and the family has yet to comment on the matter.
The Moynihans filed a wrongful death suit against Activision Blizzard earlier this year, accusing the Call of Duty publisher of being at least partially responsible for the death of their daughter, Kerri Moynihan. During a company retreat in 2017, the 32-year-old finance manager took her own life following sexual harassment from male co-workers and her male boss, Greg Restituito.
The suit also alleged that Activision Blizzard attempted to obstruct the investigation into Moynihan’s death by wiping the cell phones and laptops for both Restituito and Moynihan. The suit specifically mentioned photos of Moynihan were shared amongst male employees during the retreat, which was allegedly a "significant factor" leading to her death.
According to a report from The Washington Post, the Anaheim Police Department ruled Moynihan’s death a suicde. Moynihan was also mentioned, although not by name, in the California DFEH lawsuit against Activision Blizzard, which accuses the company of having a toxic work environment rife with abuse, discrimination, and sexual harassment. Activision Blizzard said last summer that Moynihan's death has "no bearing whatsoever" in the DFEH lawsuit.
Most recently, activist shareholder group SOC has asked Activision Blizzard shareholders to vote out the company's directors, accusing the board of shielding CEO Bobby Kotick from allegations of misconduct and mismanagement.
"Each of these directors failed either to recognize that Activision Blizzard for years maintained unsafe workplaces exhibiting frequent and repeated sexual harassment, sexual assault, and gender discrimination, or to appropriately address the Company’s ‘frat house’ culture once it was publicly revealed by the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (‘DFEH’) in its pending lawsuit, which was filed in July 2021," wrote the SOC. The letter concludes by stating the only way to reform Activision Blizzard is by replacing the board of directors in its entirety.