Our client, the world’s largest independent insurance brokerage, hired a group of employees from the plaintiff, the world’s largest insurance brokerage, to bolster its presence in Michigan. One of those individuals became the President of our client’s Michigan affiliate. Shortly thereafter, plaintiff initiated an action in Michigan state court against our brokerage client and its Michigan affiliate president, whom we also represented, claiming that she took confidential information and was soliciting plaintiff’s clients in breach of her employment agreement’s restrictive covenants, and allegedly with our client’s encouragement and assistance.
Months later, during the course of discovery, two clients with thousands of employees transferred their health and benefits insurance business from plaintiff for our brokerage client. Plaintiff filed an emergency motion for a Temporary Restraining Order and Preliminary Injunction. In its motion, plaintiff sought to enjoin our clients not only from soliciting, accepting, and servicing business from plaintiff’s current or prospective clients, but also from servicing the two clients that had already moved their business.
In the span of a little more than a week, the GEABP team drafted a 20-page opposition brief and secured three supporting affidavits, two of which were provided by the non-parties who had transferred their business. When plaintiff submitted an untimely and improper reply brief less than 48 hours before the hearing, we – less than 24 hours later – submitted opposition in response to that brief as well.
The preliminary injunction hearing was held remotely via the Web. After hearing oral argument, the judge gave his ruling from the bench, adopting all of our key arguments and denying plaintiff’s motion for injunctive relief in its entirety.
GEABP attorneys S. Preston Ricardo and Leron Thumim led the defense for our clients.