Ex-Ethereum Foundation lead sues EF and Vitalik Buterin

Kayleen Fulton, the former head of the Protocol Support team at the Ethereum Foundation, has sued the foundation, co-executive director Bastian Aue and Vitalik Buterin. The complaint, dated Nov. 4, was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado. Fulton alleges she was fired in retaliation for organizing opposition to the foundation's "mandate" and after disclosing a medical diagnosis.

Details

According to Protos and PANews, both citing the complaint, the timeline is as follows. On March 24, Fulton told management in writing she had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer. On March 25 she led a joint letter from 53 employees opposing the EF mandate, which contains a "Source Seppuku License" clause calling for a symbolic pledge to "take his or her own life with a sword" upon failing to uphold the principles. She says 79 employees voted to remove the clause, but it stayed in the published version. On April 6, she and fellow organizer Trent Van Epps were fired 30 minutes apart.

The suit invokes the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Family and Medical Leave Act. Fulton seeks damages and a ruling that her separation agreement is void. The amount sought is not stated in the coverage. Protos says the foundation did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and we found no EF statement. Wu Blockchain also flagged the filing.

What it means for the market

This is an employment dispute, not a case about the protocol or the ETH token, and it does not affect the network's operation. For the industry the significance is reputational: it concerns internal governance at the main organization around Ethereum. The case is at an early stage, and the facts above are the plaintiff's allegations, which the defendants have not yet addressed publicly. For the ETH price, see the coin page. This is not investment advice.