The lack of women participating, especially at higher levels, is really distasteful.” “They have a really dispiriting history around gender equity. “I think it’s a wake-up call to the venture capital community,” said Deborah Rhode, a Stanford University law professor and expert in legal ethics. At a time when tension over the lack of women in all areas of technology has hit a boiling point - just last month a former Stanford student filed a salacious lawsuit against a venture capitalist alleging rape - the Pao suit has put the heat squarely on venture capital. The Pao case, which began in 2012 with her lawsuit accusing Kleiner of gender discrimination and retaliating by stymying her career when she reported sexual harassment by colleagues, and ultimately firing her, has rocked the venture capital world, according to legal experts and advocates for women in technology. If she loses, Kleiner - which has denied all allegations - will have triumphed over one of its most determined opponents, a victory that will add credence to claims the firm has made repeatedly that it is among the most women-friendly venture businesses.īut for the larger VC community, it may not matter who wins. If Pao wins her suit, she walks away with up to $16 million and a victory that will likely accelerate reform in the largely closed, male-dominated venture industry. SAN FRANCISCO - She seemed an unlikely challenger to Silicon Valley’s elite - a lithe, shy Harvard graduate, alleging sex discrimination at one of the world’s most prestigious venture capital firms.īut Ellen Pao, former venture capitalist turned tech CEO, has taken her former employer, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, all the way to the state courthouse, where this week trial proceedings began in the high-profile case that has planted the schmoozy and insular venture-capital community smack dab in an unflattering spotlight.
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