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Ex-Kroger CEO Rodney McMullen can breathe a sigh of relief — for now.
An Ohio judge has sided with McMullen, ruling in a recent order that he does not have to face deposition questioning about his resignation from the supermarket giant as part of a lawsuit involving the singer-songwriter Jewel.
Attorneys representing a business owned by Jewel wanted to question McMullen about his exit as part of a contract breach lawsuit filed against Kroger in 2023.
McMullen’s attorneys argued in court documents that his March resignation has nothing to do with the “You Were Meant For Me” singer’s lawsuit and that lawyers’ questions about it are aimed at “annoying and embarrassing” him.
Hamilton County Common Pleas Court Judge Christian Jenkins agreed with McMullen, writing in an order filed late last month that “the facts and circumstances surrounding Mr. McMullen’s resignation from his position as CEO of Kroger are not relevant to the claims before this Court.”
In granting McMullen’s request for a protective order barring attorneys from questioning him about his resignation, the judge wrote that McMullen “argues this line of questioning is irrelevant, not proportional to the needs of the case, and would be embarrassing.”
Kroger announced in March that McMullen stepped down from the CEO role he held for more than 10 years after an internal investigation into his “personal conduct.” The grocery chain said that conduct was “unrelated to the business,” but added it was “inconsistent with Kroger’s Policy on Business Ethics.”
Kroger’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission show that McMullen forfeited $11.2 million in bonus and stock payments when he resigned.
McMullen is not a defendant in the lawsuit that Jewel and her business partner are behind, but the plaintiffs’ attorneys have argued that McMullen would be a trial witness in the case, and details around his resignation could be relevant to his credibility.
The judge previously ordered that McMullen must explain in a written response what led to his exit from Kroger and the identities of those involved. McMullen submitted that response to the judge on August 8.
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Jenkins wrote in his August 21 ruling that he ordered a private review of McMullen’s response to assess the “relevance, proportionality, and risk of annoyance, embarrassment, or oppression to Mr. McMullen.”
The judge previously said that if he granted McMullen’s request for a protective order, McMullen’s response would be made part of the record under seal.
Attorneys for McMullen did not immediately respond to a request for comment by Business Insider on Monday. Lawyers for the plaintiffs in the case — Wellness Your Way Festival, LLC and Inclusion Companies, LLC — also did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Jewel, born Jewel Kilcher, is an owner of the Wellness Your Way Festival, LLC.
The lawsuit against Kroger stems from allegations of a breach of partnership agreement between the supermarket chain and Jewel and her business partner, Trevor Drinkwater, the CEO of Inclusion, over Kroger’s annual Wellness Festival event in Cincinnati.
Meanwhile, details surrounding McMullen’s sudden resignation are also being sought in a separate lawsuit filed by Albertsons against Kroger over the supermarket chains’ failed merger last year.
McMullen’s conduct “raises significant concerns not only regarding his credibility, integrity, and compliance with the law, but also about his focus during the merger process and his ability to fulfill Kroger’s contractual obligations to Albertsons,” Albertsons attorneys wrote in a July motion, Bloomberg reported.
Kroger countersued Albertsons earlier this year.
Representatives for Albertsons did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A spokesperson for Kroger declined to comment.
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