Several female attorneys and investigators at the state Law Offices of the Public Defender are getting raises to resolve a lawsuit that alleged unfair compensation in comparison with male colleagues.
Women hold more than half of the state's Cabinet-level jobs under Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.
It has more than 400 employees.
SANTA FE – Several female attorneys and investigators at the state Law Offices of the Public Defender are getting raises to resolve a lawsuit that alleged unfair compensation in comparison with better-paid male colleagues.
Women hold more than half of the state’s Cabinet-level jobs under Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.
It has more than 400 employees.
No payment to the firm was made in October, or before then in 2020, according to filings seen by NBC News. Buckley Beal LLP is representing James Hallinan, who worked as a campaign communications director for Lujan Grisham and about a year after the campaign ended, accused her of sexual misconduct.
Governor Lujan Grisham, her senior advisor Dominic Gabello and her campaign "strenuously deny that there is any merit or truth to Mr. Hallinan's claims," Leopold said in a statement. "The settlement agreement fully resolves the disputed potential claims," Leopold said.
Morgan Lee / AP file. New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham has reached an at least $62,500 settlement with a former campaign staffer who accused her of sexual harassment, according to public campaign financial filings and a spokesman for the governor.
His lawyer, Rachel Berlin Benjamin with Buckley Beal LLP, told NBC News that "Governor Lujan Grisham and Mr. Hallinan have resolved any differences or issues to their satisfaction.". She said she could not provide any further information, and did not answer a question as to whether there would be further payments.
Jared Leopold, a campaign spokesperson for Lujan Grisham, confirmed the payments were part of "an agreement settling numerous dubious and disputed potential claims made by Mr. Hallinan arising from his employment in 2018 with the campaign organization."
Lujan Grisham's press secretary, Nora Meyers Sackett, declined to comment, saying the issue was "not official state business.". Neither she or Leopold would say if more payments were due to be paid out in the settlement.
Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, served as a U.S. Representative for the state, beginning in 2013 before she was elected governor in 2018. She is eligible to run for reelection in 2022. Elisha Fieldstadt is a breaking news reporter for NBC News.