Liberty University and its former chancellor, Jerry Falwell Jr., have agreed to a settlement, ending litigation that stemmed from Falwell’s ouster as leader of the prominent Virginia-based Evangelical academic institution.
According to an announcement released Friday, the two parties stated that they “have reached a global resolution agreement settling all outstanding disputes on both legal and personal matters.”
“This agreement is grounded in a firm commitment to protecting and preserving Liberty’s original mission of developing Christ-centered men and women with the values, knowledge, and skills essential to impact the world,” they said.
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“It is based on a mutual understanding regarding the amount Liberty University will pay its former president in authorized retirement and severance under the various disputed agreements and in keeping with the law; and the conditions under which the University will make use of Dr. Jerry Falwell Sr.’s name, image, and likeness.”
The two parties went on to note that they “regret the lengthy and painful litigation process,” with each side taking “responsibility for their part in the disputes.”
“Falwell acknowledges and apologizes for the errors in judgement and mistakes made during his time of leadership. The Board of Trustees acknowledge and apologize for the errors and mistakes made on their part as well,” they added.
Liberty and Falwell concluded by noting that they would not make any additional comment on the details of the settlement or about the lawsuit in general.
In August 2020, the Liberty Board of Trustees announced that they had accepted Falwell’s immediate resignation from his positions as president, chancellor and member of the board of directors.
The resignation had come shortly after revelations surfaced that Falwell’s wife had had an affair with a 29-year-old man named Giancarlo Granda, which commenced several years earlier.
Granda later attempted to blackmail the couple, telling Reuters that Falwell was aware of the extramarital affair and even “enjoyed watching from the corner of the room.”
Falwell acknowledged in a statement that his wife “had an inappropriate personal relationship with” Granda, but denied any involvement in the affair.
Later, in 2020, Falwell filed a lawsuit against Liberty leadership, alleging that they accepted inaccurate claims against Falwell’s moral character without any proper research and forced him to resign.
In a statement in October 2020, Falwell said he was “saddened that University officials, with whom I have shared so much success and enjoyed such positive relationships, jumped to conclusions about the claims made against my character, failed to properly investigate them, and then damaged my reputation following my forced resignation.”
“While I have nothing but love and appreciation for the Liberty community, and I had hoped to avoid litigation, I must take the necessary steps to restore my reputation and hopefully help repair the damage to the Liberty University brand in the process,” Falwell said at the time.
