In 2018, former Gearbox lawyer Wade Callender filed a lawsuit against Pitchford,[22] that alleged that Pitchford had left a USB drive containing sensitive Gearbox information and “child pornography” at a Medieval Times in 2014.[23][24] Pitchford clarified that the pornographic film on the USB drive was not child pornography and stated that he had saved the pornography for the purposes of studying a sexual act performed by the female actress that he claimed to be similar to a “magic trick.”[22][25] Gearbox filed a grievance with the State Bar of Texas against Callender for “filing a lawsuit that includes accusations that he knows to be untrue”.[23][24] Callender later provided documents that he claimed backed up his position.[26] An August 2019 filing further alleged Pitchford and his employers of contempt.[27] In October 2019, both sides announced that the lawsuit had been dropped, and a joint statement by the parties called the issue a misunderstanding, and further stated that Pitchford had been exonerated.[28]

In May 2019, David Eddings, the voice actor of the Borderlands character Claptrap accused Pitchford of assault during the 2017 Game Developers Conference. According to Eddings, Pitchford physically shoved Eddings after mentioning to Pitchford that he had been told someone was attempting to buy Gearbox as well as mentioning the Callender lawsuit. Eddings was let go shortly after the event, which he states was why he did not voice Claptrap in Borderlands 3. Pitchford denied he assaulted Eddings, and Gearbox stated they took the matter seriously but made no further comment as it was a personal matter.[29] "