Gearbox and former head lawyer settle tangled legal dispute

A legal dispute between Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford and the company’s former general counsel and vice president of legal affairs Wade Callender has been settled, according to a report in The Hollywood Reporter.

A Dallas County, Texas district court filing from lawyers representing the warring parties today stated: “Upon review of all the evidence in the case, it was of the opinion of counsel that the evidence exonerated Randy Pitchford from the allegations against him. All misunderstandings between the parties have been corrected, and apologies were exchanged. Because the parties are mutually bound by confidentiality, no additional statements will be forthcoming.”

Gearbox is best known for developing the Borderlands series of shooting games, including the recently released Borderlands 3. The Dallas courts have yet to officially close the case. Polygon contacted Gearbox for comment. We’ll update this story if and when we receive a reply.

Callender, who recently joined the National Rifle Association as general counsel, filed a lawsuit back in January that included explosive allegations. The 27-page suit alleged that Pitchford paid himself a $12 million bonus while denying raises to employees. It also said that Pitchford left a thumb drive at a restaurant, which included “under age pornography.” Pitchford later claimed that the images were associated with his interest in magic tricks.

Gearbox filed a counter suit against Callender, who was a childhood friend of Pitchford. It alleged that Callender had misused company funds, and accused him of breach of contract. In August, Polygon reported that Gearbox failed to follow through on court requests for evidence. Now, both cases have been settled.