Recently, former employees attempted to get claims that they disclosed trade secrets of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. to other employees at AMD after joining Nvidia Corp., another micro chip making company, in order to get the ex-colleagues to follow them. U.S. District Judge Timothy Hillman did grant the former employees’ request to toss out unfair competition claims, but did not dismiss claims of breach of contract and misappropriation of trade secrets.

Based in Sunnyvale, CA, AMD alleged that when former employees went to work for competitor Nvidia, they took sensitive company documents with them. According to the complaint, over 100,000 electronic files related to Advanced Micro Devices’ graphics-processing business were transferred by employees in the time period prior to their departure. The complaint, filed in January, also alleged that the former employees recruited other employees from AMD to leave the company.

Contracts signed by employees of AMD included no solicitation agreements, which means that workers are legally bound not to attempt to entice fellow employees or customers to leave the company. These solicitation agreements are valid both during an employee’s tenure with AMD, and for a specified time period after an employee terminates employment with the company.

According to news articles, AMD apparently does not suspect that Nvidia played a role in the trade secret and contract violations, as the company was not named in the lawsuit. The trade secrets’ lawsuit will move forward.

At Spotora & Associates, our Los Angeles business litigation attorneys understand the importance of protecting your company’s trade secrets. Our team of experienced and capable lawyers work diligently to prevent further harm to your business, and hold those who have divulged information illegally accountable.