Labor & Employment
More Companies Suing Job Hoppers for Luring Away Co-Workers
Posted Nov 26, 2007, 03:56 pm CST
By Molly McDonough
Even without a noncompete agreement, workplace experts are advising job-hoppers to be careful about urging subordinates to join them.
The Wall Street Journal reports that a growing number of companies are suing their former employees for luring staff away. The cause of action? Breach of fiduciary duty.
Plus, the threat of litigation is enough to end a job prospect. Allan Bloom, an employment lawyer at Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker in New York, is quoted as saying he's seen offers pulled when new employers think there will be litigation over a new recruit.
The WSJ notes several instances of pre-exit activities that entangled the parties in costly litigation. In one instance, an accountant reportedly showed a competitor a list of nearly 70 clients he served, including the fees some of them paid. And while most of the suit's claims were dismissed this summer because the previous employer couldn't prove the client names were its property, the job-hopper was ordered to stand trial for breach of fiduciary duty for calling 20 clients before he left, the WSJ reports.