Financial Services Company
Key Facts:
- Investigation of potential client poaching and breach of non-compete restriction
- Enforcement of employment contract terms at exit
- Threat of High Court injunction
- Agreement secured to protect client
Summary
Jurit was appointed by a banking software company to provide overarching employment law support on a retained basis, to support the business as it and its workforce grew.
Initially, we undertook a process to ensure our client’s contracts and policies were legally compliant, updating these as required in order to protect our clients’ interests, whilst providing ongoing telephone helpline support.
This ensured that the client was set up for the future, should a potential employment issue arise. This became the case some years later, when one of the firm’s senior sales executives was exiting the business.
Challenge
- Unbeknown to our client, a senior sales executive approached one of the firm’s clients at a business lunch prior to handing in his notice, to inform them he was moving to a competitor
- He asked if the client wished to follow him to the new firm – an attempt to poach a client, whilst using the firm’s money to pay for the lunch meeting
- Our client discovered this when the client’s CEO (with whom the sales executive had lunch), contacted them to inform them of the approach.
How we helped
- Having drafted the sales executive’s employment contract, we understood the terms on which he was employed and began a disciplinary process
- We carried out an investigation to gather information about what had happened
- We wrote to the employee requesting written assurances that he would not join a competitor during the period of restriction and that he would not attempt to solicit clients of the business
- We informed the employee that we would enforce the post-termination restrictions via an injunction application to the High Court if he failed to provide the undertakings required
- As we were about to issue injunction proceedings, the employee agreed to sign the required undertakings.
Result
- Having originally drafted the contractual restrictions to protect our client’s business, we were in a position to enforce those terms through the threat of legal action
- The employee was successfully bound to the terms of his employment contract, and our client’s business interests and confidential information, were protected as a result
- We continue to be appointed on a retainer basis as the firm’s trusted employment adviser.
Testimonial
We are grateful to Jurit for their ongoing employment law support, which ensured that, when faced with an employee attempting to join a competitor and poach a key client, our business was not only appropriately protected but was armed to take the issue to the High Court if necessary. Their advice throughout has been invaluable
People Manager - Banking Software Company
