A state appellate court has upheld a whistleblower retaliation verdict that awarded $5 million to a former San Francisco deputy city attorney.

In an unpublished opinion, California’s First District Court of Appeal said Thursday that evidence “amply supports” a jury’s finding in 2017 that City Attorney Dennis Herrera sidelined and then fired senior trial attorney Joanne Hoeper for investigating payments made by the city to replace private sewer systems, a practice she alleged was tied to a kickback scheme.