Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton negotiating settlement with his former deputies over retaliation lawsuit

Attorney General Ken Paxton’s lawyers are entering settlement negotiations with three plaintiffs in a case brought by former employees who say they were unjustly fired when they reported Paxton's actions to authorities. A fourth plaintiff has not agreed to discuss a settlement. (Credit: Eric Lee for The Texas Tribune)

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s legal team is in settlement negotiation talks with three of the four former employees who filed a whistleblower lawsuit against him for firing them after they accused Paxton of criminal acts.

Paxton’s lawyers, in a joint filing last week with attorneys for Mark Penley, David Maxwell and Ryan Vassar — Paxton’s former deputies — asked the Texas Supreme Court to put the whistleblower case on hold to give the parties time to negotiate a settlement. The lawyers wrote they were “actively engaged in settlement discussions” with mediation set for Wednesday.