Midland-based Dow Chemical Co. settled lawsuits by a former company fraud investigator who claimed she was wrongfully fired for uncovering improper spending by CEO Andrew Liveris and others. Dow and Kimberly Wood “reached an amicable settlement” of her claims, Rachelle Schikorra, a Dow spokeswoman, wrote in an email Monday. Terms are confidential, she said. The accord was initially reported Friday on the website of abc12.com.
Settling marks a reversal for Liveris, who is also chairman of the biggest U.S. chemical maker by revenue. After a federal judge rejected Dow’s motion to dismiss the suit in December, the company said it would defend the case “vigorously.”
Victor Mastromarco Jr., Wood’s attorney, said in a statement that the settlement was “amicable.”
Wood, who filed the case under whistle-blower provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, alleged Dow paid for Liveris family trips to the Super Bowl, World Cup and Masters Tournament, as well as an African safari, prompting the CEO to repay $719,923. She said Dow was “funneling money” to the Hellenic Initiative, a Greek charity Liveris co-founded.
Wood, a 25-year Dow employee, claimed she found millions of dollars in cost overruns during the renovation of the Dow-owned H Hotel in Midland.
She said she was fired in October 2013 after alleging Dow managers improperly recorded expenses to hide cost overruns at the Olefins 2 ethylene project, which she flagged to her supervisor as “financial-statement fraud.”
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