San Diego

Setting the stage for the City Hall sex-and-hush-money scandal to move into court, the San Diego City Council rejected Tuesday a multimillion-dollar claim filed by the two former city officials at the center of the controversy.

By a unanimous vote in closed session, the council rejected the claims filed by former Planning Director Robert Spaulding and former Gaslamp Quarter planner Susan M. Bray, clearing the way for the two to file lawsuits against the city.

In her claim, Bray had sought at least $2.35 million, saying that her personal and professional reputations were ruined by public disclosure of the secret $98,531 payment that she received from the city as a result of an earlier sexual-harassment claim stemming from her affair with Spaulding.

Meanwhile, Spaulding, who resigned under pressure in May, sought $2.75 million in damages from the city, claiming that he lost his $108,000-a-year job because of malpractice by the city attorney’s office.