Two lawsuits filed by former caregivers against WordPress co-founder Matt Mullenweg and his family have settled just days before one was scheduled to go to trial.

The cases, brought in June 2022 by Asmahan Attayeb and Jennifer Westmoreland in the San Francisco Superior Court, accused Mullenweg and his family of wage violations, discrimination, and retaliation during their time working in his household. Both women cared for Kathleen Mullenweg, Matt’s mother, and were employed by his company, Audrey HC, LLC.

According to court filings, the women alleged a hostile work environment, long hours without proper breaks, and claimed they felt compelled to resign. They asked the court to hold Mullenweg personally liable, arguing that Audrey HC was little more than a shell company under his control. That argument — known as an “alter ego” claim, in a legal context — is used when someone is said to be operating through a company as if it were an extension of themselves.

In a deposition, Mullenweg testified that he used Audrey HC to employ household staff, including caregivers, as well as contractors for editorial and technical work on his personal projects, including WP Tavern. The plaintiffs argued that this mix of household and non-household work supported their claim that the company and its owner were effectively one and the same.

The Mullenwegs denied all allegations. Their legal team tried to push both cases into arbitration, but the court sided with Attayeb and Westmoreland. Appeals followed and were ultimately denied, clearing the path to trial.

Discovery in both cases stretched over more than a year, with disputes over withheld documents and delays in scheduling testimony. In the lead-up to the trials in both cases, the defense filed more than 20 motions, including efforts to exclude witness testimony, text messages, Slack conversations, and a blog post Mullenweg published in October 2024. The post became the basis for a second defamation claim Attayeb added to her case in April 2025, after her legal team questioned Mullenweg about it during a deposition.

Titled “Those Other Lawsuits,” the post claimed Mullenweg’s mother experienced serious health concerns while the former caregivers were employed — a claim Attayeb’s legal team argued was aimed at her and was grounds for defamation.

In the same post, Mullenweg also advised other wealthy founders in similar situations to “Never settle. It just creates an incentive for more people to make stuff up. Even if it’s messy, fight the claims in court as I am doing.” The post has since been taken down. The defense didn’t oppose Attayeb’s amendment but reserved the right to challenge it.

Westmoreland v. Mullenweg didn’t include a defamation claim, but echoed many of Attayeb’s other allegations, including a hostile and discriminatory work environment, unpaid wages, and a lack of breaks.

Attayeb’s trial was set for May 19, with Westmoreland’s to follow in June. But on May 15, just four days before the trial was scheduled to begin, Attayeb’s attorney filed a notice of conditional settlement. Court records show Westmoreland’s case was also settled that same day.

The settlements quietly end a legal battle that stretched nearly three years. The terms were not disclosed and no findings were made. The Mullenwegs consistently denied all allegations throughout the proceedings.

Mullenweg declined to comment on the settlement. The Repository has also contacted Attayeb and Westmoreland’s attorney, Susan Rubenstein, for comment.