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Ex-Minnesota Senate employee takes step toward lawsuit

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Mar 21, 2012 at 4:33 pm

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - A former Minnesota legislative employee who was fired in connection to an affair with the Senate majority leader is taking a concrete step toward a possible lawsuit.

Michael Brodkorb planned to register a formal gender discrimination complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, his attorney said Wednesday. The step precedes a lawsuit that could come soon.

Brodkorb was fired in December soon after Majority Leader Amy Koch resigned her leadership post. No one would publicly confirm that Brodkorb and Koch were having an affair until his lawyers made the admission last week.

Brodkorb has pursued a negotiated settlement with the state over his termination, but those efforts haven't been productive.

Senate attorneys say the termination was handled properly and they regard his lawsuit threats as akin to extortion.