You seem to be under the impression that "trial" means only a criminal trial. A civil court case was to have been held and that is just as much a trial and sub judice also applies.

There also seems to be an assumption that an NDA would only have been imposed if the allegations were true, whereas they are routinely used in settlement agreements regardless of the issues. The mere existence of an NDA cannot be taken as evidence of guilt, and the use of standard contract terms is not in itself "shady".