Sexual Harassment Lawsuits Plague Equity Management Startup Carta

　　In the tightly knit, male-dominated world of venture capital and startups, sexual harassment or gender discrimination lawsuits are relatively rare. Nondisclosure agreements and non-disparagement clauses are prevalent, and settlements often precede public accusations. Therefore, high-profile cases such as the Ellen Pao-Kleiner Perkins case from 2012, the Whitney Wolfe-Tinder lawsuit in 2014, or the Ann Lai-Binary Capital lawsuit in 2022, made significant waves.

　　Carta, an equity management startup valued at $7.4 billion two years ago, has faced three gender-related lawsuits as of this summer. Another woman published an essay on Medium in 2020, alleging grievances against the company. Carta, its CEO Henry Ward, and CRO declined to comment for this story, but in court filings, they have vehemently denied all allegations.

　　A recent feature story detailed the most recent allegations against the company, based on interviews with eight former and current employees, investors, and people familiar with the board and company. A letter sent by Carta's former CTO to the company's eight board members, including Marc Andreessen and Joe Osnoss, prompted a board investigation last year. The former CTO was fired two months after sending the letter, and Carta is currently engaged in an ongoing lawsuit against him, alleging that he secretly recorded executives.

　　The high turnover among Carta's senior employees has raised concerns about the company's stability. A current Carta employee expressed the perception that CEO Henry Ward lacks control over the company due to the public allegations.

　　The venture capital and startup world is a small one, as evidenced by the resumes of people involved in the ongoing Carta lawsuits. The lawyer defending Carta's CRO, Jeff Perry, is Lynne Hermle, the same lawyer who defended Kleiner Perkins against Ellen Pao in 2012-2015. Perry's wife, Jessica Perry, had also been on Kleiner's legal defense team. Matt Murphy, who sits on Carta's board, is the same person who fired Pao.

　　For more details, you can read the full story here. If you have relevant information, please reach out to the author, Jessica Mathews, to contribute to the ongoing reporting on Carta.

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