The ousted communications chief will reportedly file a lawsuit seeking $500,000, claiming Senate Secretary Cal Ludeman defamed him when he told the press Brodkorb was trying to "blackmail" the Senate through a wrongful-termination case. Brodkorb was fired from the Senate after his affair with then-Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch came to light.

Former Senate Republican staff member Michael Brodkorb claims he was wrongfully fired and is moving ahead with a lawsuit after the Senate rejected mediation. His lawyer says papers filed with the state acknowledge Brodkorb had an "intimate relationship" with former Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch.

The state of Minnesota and former Republican Senate staffer Michael Brodkorb on Thursday were ordered into confidential settlement talks by U.S. Chief Magistrate Judge Arthur J. Boylan, the Star Tribune reports. The sessions are to begin Sept. 24. The judge asked both sides to submit confidential letters that summarize their settlement positions, and he put a gag order on both sides to prevent them from talking to the media, the newspaper says.

Michael Brodkorb is a former staffer for Minnesota Senate Republicans whose lawsuit claims he was wrongfully fired. Majority Leader Dave Senjem says the suit has no merit and the Senate will prevail in court. Some DFLers fear the bills could climb to $1 million and want Republicans to set up a legal defense fund instead of using state money to pay the attorneys.

A former Minnesota Senate aide who was fired over an affair with the chamber's majority leader is slimming down his lawsuit against the state. Michael Brodkorb was fired last year after Senate leaders discovered his affair with then-Majority Leader Amy Koch. He is suing the state over the dismissal. Now he's dropping several invasion-of-privacy claims to focus on defamation and gender discrimination claims.