SAVANNAH, Ga. — Lawyers signed a deal Friday to drop a discrimination and sexual harassment lawsuit against celebrity cook Paula Deen, who was dumped by the Food Network and other business partners after she said under oath that she had used racial slurs in the past.
A document filed in U.S. District Court in Savannah said both sides agreed to drop the lawsuit “without any award of costs or fees to any party.”
No other details of the agreement were released. The judge in the case had not signed an order to finalize the dismissal.
Former employee Lisa Jackson last year sued Deen and her brother, Bubba Hiers, saying she suffered from sexual harassment and racially offensive talk and employment practices that were unfair to black workers during her five years as a manager of Uncle Bubba’s Seafood and Oyster House. Deen is co-owner of the restaurant, primarily run by Hiers.
The dismissal deal came less than two weeks after Judge William T. Moore threw out the race-discrimination claims, ruling Jackson, who is white, had no standing to sue over what she said was poor treatment of black workers. He let Jackson’s claims of sexual harassment stand, but the deal drops that also.
The lawsuit will be dismissed “with prejudice,” which means it can’t be brought again with the same claims.
“While this has been a difficult time for both my family and myself, I am pleased that the judge dismissed the race claims and I am looking forward to getting this behind me, now that the remaining claims have been resolved,” Deen said in a statement Friday.
Jackson also issued a statement backpedaling on assertions in her suit that Deen held “racist views.”
It wasn’t Jackson’s racism allegations, but rather Deen’s own words that caused serious damage to her public image and wallet.
At a deposition in May, Deen was asked whether she has ever used the N-word. “Yes, of course,” Deen replied, then added: “It’s been a very long time.”
Within a few days, the Food Network didn’t renew her contract and pulled her shows off the air. Retailers, her publisher and other firms also dropped her.
