Ethereum Foundation "Dissent" Controversy: Two Co-Signers of Open Letter Dismissed, Lawsuit Reveals Inside Story

A newly filed lawsuit in Colorado federal court has revealed the internal dispute behind a wave of high-profile departures from the Ethereum Foundation, centering on a March 13 "Mandate" document whose embedded "Source Seppuku License" drew objections from 79 staffers who voted to remove it. The suit, brought by former Protocol Support lead Kayleen Fulton (Nixo), alleges co-executive director Bastian Aue issued an ultimatum requiring employees to sign the Mandate or be treated as resigning, and that two organizers of a 53-person protest letter in the Protocol group were subsequently fired on April 6. The complaint names the Foundation's Swiss and Singapore entities, two nominal employer firms, Aue and Vitalik Buterin as defendants; Buterin backed keeping the controversial clause and defended both the sudden signing requirement and the dismissals. Then co-executive director and board member Aya Miyaguchi had argued that staff concerns were critical to the Foundation's future, per the filing. The dispute matters because it tests the Foundation's own stated commitment to dissent and humility as it positions itself as steward—not owner—of Ethereum; the Foundation has not yet filed a response, and what to watch next is whether the board acknowledges the ultimatum and firings as mistakes and removes the disputed clause.