Cylvia Hayes settles with The Oregonian over legal fees

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – The parent company for The Oregonian/OregonLive has reached a settlement with former first lady Cylvia Hayes that reduces the $128,000 in legal fees a judge ordered her to pay after her unsuccessful lawsuit to stop the release of her emails.

The Oregonian/OregonLive reports terms of the settlement were read into the record of Hayes’ bankruptcy proceeding this week.

A judge in the 2015 suit released most of the emails and ordered Hayes, a Bend resident, to pay legal fees. After The Oregonian filed a lien against her home, Hayes filed for bankruptcy.

Ethics investigators concluded that Hayes abused her access to Gov. John Kitzhaber to land consulting work that paid over $200,000. The scandal led to Kitzhaber’s resignation.

The settlement says Oregonian’s parent company will accept $15,000 to satisfy the debt if paid within one year; or $20,000 if paid within five years, or $25,000 if paid within nine years.

Earlier this month, state ethics commissioners rejected a proposed settlement with Hayes for breaking ethics laws 22 times. She did not appear for the commission’s discussion of the matter.