Settlement Reached in TV Writers’ Age-Discrimination Lawsuit

By our guest blogger, Lita Robinson

After a nearly 10-year legal battle, The Hollywood Reporter is announcing that a settlement has been reached in a major class-action age discrimination lawsuit brought by 165 over-40 television writers.

The defendants, Variety reports, include “seventeen major television networks and production studios and seven talents agencies.” CBS, ABC, NBC and Fox among others have reportedly agreed to a $70 million settlement, though the exact calculus for how each plaintiff will be compensated has yet to be worked out. $43 million will be distributed amongst plaintiffs and $25 million will go to attorneys. $2.5 million will be set aside in order to establish a “fund for the future,” which will issue grants and loans to the writers, as well as possibly supplementing pensions and health insurance.

Plaintiffs included former writers from shows such as “Bewitched,” “Star Trek: Voyager,” "Hart to Hart," and “Magnum P.I.,” among others.