SAN FRANCISCO — A discrimination lawsuit that put a spotlight on gender balance and working conditions for women at Silicon Valley firms ended with a jury rejecting the female plaintiff's claims.
The jury of six men and six women determined Friday venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers did not discriminate against Ellen Pao because she was a women and did not retaliate against her by failing to promote her and firing her after she filed a sex discrimination complaint.
"Kleiner Perkins appears to have done an effective job convincing the jury it didn't have a woman problem, that it didn't promote Mrs. Pao because of her performance and not something that was based on stereotyping," said Jason Knott, a Washington, D.C., attorney who has worked on employment cases and closely watched the trial.
The jury in San Francisco reached the verdict after three days of deliberations and a five-week trial that debated gender imbalance at Silicon Valley technology and venture capital firms.
A study introduced as evidence during the trial showed that women are grossly underrepresented as partners in the venture capital sector. Industry consultants said the case had sparked some technology and venture companies to re-examine their cultures and practices for potential gender bias even before the verdict.
Pao waved quickly to the jury as she left the courtroom after the verdict was announced.
"I have told my story and thousands of people have heard it. If I helped to level the playing field for women and minorities in venture capital, then the battle was worth it," she said, adding that she will return to her career, family and friends.