If your former employees try to set up a competing business, you can set up a springboard injunction to counteract their business activity. But does it always work?
A recent case involving Aquinas Education Ltd and Miller & Ors involved the Court lifting a springboard injunction on two former employees from setting up a competing business.
The two defendants were former employees of Aquinas and decided to set up a competing business called Link3. They took information from Aquinas’s IT systems such as CVs and school contact details. Link3 approached the candidates and even successfully managed to place some candidates in schools.
The Court placed a temporary injunction on the two former employees but at a later hearing the Court was asked to determine whether or not to allow a prohibitory injunction, a springboard injunction or both types of injunction to continue.
A springboard injunction is where the defendants are prevented from benefiting from their head start (in this case using the CVs and contact details they obtained).
A prohibitory injunction is where the defendants are prevented from using their former employer’s confidential information.
The Court endeavoured to restore each company to the competitive position they would have been in if Link3 hadn’t obtained the confidential information. The verdict was that the injunction currently in place had already done its job, as Link3’s ‘head start’ had already ended and minimal profits were made.
What does this mean for your company?
What we can learn from this case is that it’s vital to ensure all employee contracts contain restrictions from setting up a competitive company for a certain period of time post-employment. If you haven’t already put this in place, then you could get a springboard injunction although this should be used as a last resort. The case also teaches us to keep tight security measures on information, data and other confidential details.
Do you need advice on springboard injunctions? Contact Alison via email for more information.
