I hate to say this but if you can be bought off for one year’s severance pay how much abuse did you suffer? Plus why did you have to leave your position in the first place if you were the victim? I’m just not buying it.
Today, any man who has climbed a corporate executive ladder is very likely to have sexual harassment settlements in his history. It comes with the territory, if you insist on your staff getting the job done, regardless of whatever else might come up. This is also true for women who have climbed the corporate ladder.
I do not consider sexual harassment settlements a defining mark on any candidate.