Silicon Valley rocked by gender bias case

Lawyers in a high-profile gender bias lawsuit against a giant Silicon Valley firm argued the woman behind the case was either an accomplished junior partner who was passed over for a promotion because of discrimination or a failure who sued to get a big payout as she was being shown the door.

The attorneys presented the contrasting portraits of Ellen Pao in their closing arguments before a packed courtroom in the case against venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.

A victory could see Pao awarded as much as $160m.

Company lawyer Lynne Hermle challenged Pao’s claim that she sued to help women facing gender discrimination at the firm.

“The complaints of Ellen Pao were made for only one purpose — a huge payout for team Ellen,” Hermle said.

Pao’s lawyer made his closing argument earlier, telling jurors the company had different standards for men and women that led to the denial of a promotion to Pao despite her accomplishments.

“The evidence in this case compels the conclusion that men were judged by one standard and women by another,” lawyer Alan Exelrod said. “The leaders of Kleiner Perkins are the ones responsible for this double standard.”

The suit has shined a light on the gross under representation of women in the technology and venture capital sectors and led some companies to re-examine their cultures and practices — even before the jury reaches a verdict.

Pao’s attorneys have portrayed her as the victim of a male-dominated culture at Kleiner Perkins where she was subjected to retaliation by a male colleague with whom she had an affair and a discussion about pornography aboard a private plane. Pao also testified about receiving a book of erotic poetry from a male partner at the company.

Her lawsuit says she was fired in 2012 after complaining about gender discrimination. Exelrod called the firm a “boys club” and referenced trial testimony and emails from prominent venture capitalist John Doerr, a partner at Kleiner Perkins, to show that Pao had been successful at the company.

“This case should be about what Ms Pao did for Kleiner Perkins,” Exelrod said.

Among her accomplishments was convincing the firm to invest in a company that later enjoyed great success and helping two companies merge, Exelrod said.

Exelrod said two male colleagues of Pao had been promoted, even though one was called confrontational and another was accused of having “sharp elbows,” an apparent reference to his treatment of other workers.

Pao has said the colleague she had an affair with hounded her into the relationship and lied about his wife having left him.