League of Legends Creator Riot Games Could Owe Over $400 Million in Lawsuit, State Agencies Say

Riot Games reached a settlement agreement late last year to pay out $10 million to women who levied a gender discrimination class action suit against the League of Legends developers, but state agencies in California say the company could owe more than that. Both the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing and the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement have weighed in on the case with the former suggesting that Riot could owe "over $400 million" to compensate for wage differences between men and women within the company.

The Los Angeles Times reported this week that both state agencies are involving themselves in the case through investigations and their opinions on the matter. The Department of Fair Employment and Housing suggested in a document filed this month the $400 million figure which would be paid out to women at Riot Games as back pay. This organization previously launched an investigation into Riot Games in 2018 and said that "no enforceable changes to employment policies, at a company alleged to be rife with sexism, are part of the settlement."

Riot and the law firm representing the plaintiffs filed rebuttals to the statements made by the Department of Fair Employment and Housing. Riot spokesperson Joe Hixson shared a statement with the Los Angeles Times regarding the agency's assertions.

"We worked hard to negotiate with the lawyer representing the class to reach an agreement that we collectively believe is fair for the class members," Hixson said. "Now DFEH is trying to disrupt that agreement in a legal filing that is filled with inaccuracies and false allegations.

"We are particularly dismayed that the filing downplays and ignores the efforts we have made with respect to diversity, inclusion, and culture over the past 18 months," Hixson continued. "We look forward to making our case to the Court."

The Division of Labor Standards Enforcement filed to intervene in the case in December and said due diligence wasn't done by the lawyers representing the women at Riot. It also suggested the terms of the settlement excused Riot from possible labor law violations outside of what was covered in the lawsuit.

The settlement in question was reached last year with Riot announcing in December that it intended to pay out $10 million to women in its workplace. This class action suit stems from allegations of "bro culture," gender discrimination, and various forms of harassment which were first detailed in an investigation from Kotaku.