Overview
- The Steiners dismissed their 2021 civil suit after filing a late‑July settlement that pays them $55.7 million in total, resolving years of criminal and civil proceedings.
- Under the deal eBay will pay $46.15 million to the couple, former CEO Devin Wenig will pay $2 million and donate $1 million to a First Amendment charity, Wendy Jones will pay $500,000, Steve Wymer will pay $50,000, and eBay will fund $6 million in charitable contributions.
- Federal criminal cases from 2020–2022 produced guilty pleas by seven former eBay employees who admitted to a coordinated campaign of threats, disturbing deliveries and in‑person surveillance of the Steiners, with sentences up to 57 months.
- Prosecutors and court filings revealed internal eBay messages from 2018–2019 in which senior executives used aggressive language about Ina Steiner, and the settlement requires a public statement acknowledging the unprofessional tone of those communications.
- The couple insisted on no confidentiality so they could speak publicly about the case, a move their lawyers say is meant to protect press freedom and to push companies to strengthen ethics, oversight and training to prevent similar attacks.