Olivia Wilde and Jason Sudeikis will not be going to trial with their former nanny.
A Los Angeles judge has ruled that a wrongful termination lawsuit filed by Ericka Genaro—who worked for the former couple between 2018 and 2021—be resolved in out-of-court arbitration, according to court documents obtained by E! News.
"We don't agree with the decision, but it is what it is and now we'll litigate it in arbitration and the case goes on," Ron Zambrano, Genero' attorney and partner and Employment Litigation Chair at West Coast Employment Lawyers, told E! News in a statement Aug. 16. "This does not terminate the lawsuit. It merely changes the venue."
Zambrano continued, "As to the underlying facts, we've got text messages and testimony that she was driven to quit, then was summarily fired anyway. We feel extremely confident in the case so instead of taking this to trial, we'll handle it in arbitration and we're ready to move forward."
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Genaro is seeking punitive damages—including loss of earnings, deferred compensation and other employment benefits—from Wilde and Sudeikis after allegedly taking on an increased parenting role to their kids Otis, 9, and Daisy, 6, when the "Don't Worry Darling" director left the family home in 2020.
In court documents previously obtained by E! News, Genaro's legal team alleged the pressure of "not only being the primary caretaker of the children, but also filling in Wilde's absence for the children became debilitating" for their client.
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Genaro's "anxiety and stress did not get any better" when news of Wilde and Sudeikis' breakup made headlines, according to her lawsuit, and she eventually had to seek therapy. Her lawsuit alleged that she was fired by Sudeikis on the spot when she approached the Ted Lasso star about taking a three-day break at the advice of medical professionals.
When reached by E! News for comment on the upcoming arbitration, a representative for Wilde and Sudeikis said, "The lawsuit has been fully dismissed. Both Olivia and Jason are hopeful they can finally close this chapter after what has not only been a selfish grab for financial gain, but a shameless exploitation of their trust played out in the media."
In response, Zambrano told E! News, "While the plaintiff's substantive rights and claims in the complaint remain unscathed and will be litigated in New York, the defendants are obviously free to relish in a win on a procedural front but that doesn't mean the lawsuit is moot or over. We're now just going to argue our case in arbitration rather than before a jury in Los Angeles."
Zambrano added, "Perhaps most attractive to Ms. Wilde and Mr. Sudeikis is that the evidence is now shielded from public view. But once we read the judge's full decision, which is still pending, we believe there will be grounds for appeal."
