ViacomCBS Inc. said Friday it will reclaim Les Moonves’s $120 million severance package, resolving a more than two-year dispute with the former chief executive over his termination, The Wall Street Journal reports.
Moonves resigned as chairman and CEO of CBS Corp. amid accusations of sexual harassment in September 2018. He has denied the claims.
He was denied his severance after a CBS board investigation concluded that he had violated company policies, breached his employment contract and intentionally failed to fully cooperate with the investigation.
In January 2019, Mr. Moonves challenged the company’s decision to withhold his $120 million severance package as part of the terms of his exit agreement. Under the agreement, Mr. Moonves forfeited nearly $34.5 million of his compensation package.
CBS merged with Viacom Inc. in December 2019. The $120 million was held in a trust while the dispute was subject to arbitration.
ViacomCBS said in a regulatory filing Friday, “The disputes between Mr. Moonves and CBS have now been resolved, and on May 14, 2021, the parties dismissed the arbitration proceeding.”
ViacomCBS and Mr. Moonves also put out a joint statement saying that Mr. Moonves was paid a settlement by an unidentified contractor, and that Moonves is donating the money to charity.
A person familiar with the matter said the contractor is law firm Covington & Burling. A spokesman for declined to comment.
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