Over appliance parts, a case of espionage

BUFFALO, N.Y., March 21 (UPI) — A New York state judge has barred appliance parts firm 1st Source Servall from soliciting business from a rival firm’s client list due to corporate espionage.

State Supreme Court Justice John Michalek, in a 21-page injunction said, “Unrebutted evidence now demonstrates” two former Marcone Supply company employees “intentionally took and/or received” customer information from their former employer, The Buffalo News reported Monday.

With the list in hand, Marcone employee Mark Creighton resigned from his job April 20, 2010, and “within six days became Servall’s vice president of sales for the Northeast Region,” the judge wrote.

In addition, the judge said Creighton admitted he destroyed memory sticks and a computer hard drive that contained information about 3,300 Marcone customers.

The judge’s injunction is limited to the top 640 clients on Marcone’s customer list. Marcone attorney James Donathen called the situation “serious” and “a classic case of corporate espionage.”

Marcone lost $12 million worth of business in 2010 because of the theft, the company said.

“I think the main reason they’re suing Servall is that Servall is No. 2, and a lot of customers are better off with Servall,” Servall attorney B. Kevin Burke Jr. said.

“Customers are better served if there is competition,” Burke said.

Article source: http://www.upi.com/Business_News/2011/03/21/Over-appliance-parts-a-case-of-espionage/UPI-75211300730057/