Orthofix’s fired execs’ lewd, ‘graphic’ texts surface in legal battle (MedTechDive)
Orthofix didn’t originally specify the reasons behind the 2023 firing of its CEO, CFO and CLO. Now, a court case is illuminating the story behind the terminations.
When Orthofix Medical abruptly fired its then CEO, CFO, and chief legal officer in 2023, the company said it did so “for cause” after an investigation conducted by outside legal counsel found the three executives had “engaged in repeated inappropriate and offensive conduct that violated multiple code of conduct requirements.”
The medical device maker’s ousting of its then-CEO Keith Valentine, then-CFO John Bostjancic and then-CLO Patrick Keran rattled investors, with the stock plummeting 30% on the day of the announcement, even as the Lewisville, Texas-based company did not specify what those violations entailed.
Now the details behind what drove the firings — including a trove of off-color and at times lewd and racist private texts shared privately between the trio — are coming to light in litigation stemming from a lawsuit filed in a California court by the terminated executives.
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