On the recordSeptember 7, 2016
This amendment would exempt settlements resolving workplace sexual harassment, violence, or discrimination; but nothing in the underlying bill prevents victims of workplace harassment, violence, or discrimination from obtaining relief. The Stop Settlement Slush Funds Act of 2016 explicitly permits remedial payments to third-party victims who were directly and proximately harmed by the defendant's wrongdoing. Nor does the bill preclude wider conduct remedies used in discrimination cases. Nothing in the bill debars the Department of Justice from requiring a defendant to implement workplace training and monitoring programs. The ban on third-party payments merely ensures that the defendant remains responsible for performing these tasks itself and is not forced to outsource set sums for the work of two third parties who might be friendly with a given administration. Accordingly, I urge my colleagues to oppose this amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.
