In March 2022, R&B singer Brandy was sued by her former housekeeper for $250,000 after she alleged that she was fired due to her age.
Now, the singer has reportedly reached a settlement in which she agreed to pay around $40,000 and was ordered to pay an additional $30,000 toward the woman’s legal fees.
According to People, the housekeeper alleged that when she was fired, she was also still owed payment for her work.
The 60-year-old housekeeper, Maria Elizabeth Castaneda, claimed that Brandy fired her for being too old, despite working for the singer since 2002.
Castaneda said she was paid $125 a day for cooking, cleaning, and laundry services at Brandy’s Calabasas, Calif. home.
She also alleged that Brandy broke California labor laws, including failing to pay minimum wage, failing to provide proper breaks, and more.
Castaneda said she was “not permitted to take an uninterrupted 10-minute rest break in the morning and an uninterrupted 10-minute rest break in the afternoon, nor was [Castaneda] permitted to take an uninterrupted 30-minute meal rest break.”
Per Radar Online, Brandy apparently originally settled the wrongful termination lawsuit by agreeing to pay Castaneda $40,000.
Castaneda also asked for $87,000 toward her legal fees, which Brandy’s lawyer called “frankly astounding, excessive, unreasonable, and entirely unsupported.”
“This case was incorrectly pled on its face, poorly litigated, and settled quickly for a mere $40,000,” her lawyer added.
A judge has since signed off on the request but reduced the amount to around $30,000 instead.
Reportedly, the order said, “[Castaneda] asserts that [Brandy’s] star status warrants a boost in the fee award. The Court is not convinced. Indeed, it may be that an early settlement pegged to the level of [Castaneda’s] wage loss was available early in the case because a celebrity like [Brandy] would want to end an unflattering lawsuit rapidly to keep it out of the public eye.”
Notably, Brandy was also sued in January 2022 by a fashion designer and store owner over a ring she wore to the American Music Awards and never returned, as reported by People.