civil lawsuit
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Steve Jobs reportedly threatened Palm over anti-poaching agreement
Documents released in a civil lawsuit against Apple and other high-profile tech companies claim Steve Jobs threatened to sue Palm if it refused to sign an anti-poaching agreement. Defendants in the lawsuit asked the court to keep these documents sealed, but Judge Lucy Koh denied this request, according to Reuters. The civil suit focuses on anti-poaching agreements signed by Adobe, Apple, Google, Intel, Intuit and Pixar. The agreements would prevent these companies from stealing talented employees from each other. The DOJ eventually stepped in and forced the companies to stop entering into these anticompetitive no solicitation agreements. Former Palm CEO Edward Colligan said in an affidavit that the Jobs tried to coerce Palm into participating in an anti-poaching agreement after the company hired a handful of Apple employees. "As a solution, Mr. Jobs proposed an arrangement between Palm and Apple by which neither company would hire the other's employees, including high-tech employees," Colligan said. "Mr. Jobs also suggested that if Palm did not agree to such an arrangement, Palm could face lawsuits alleging infringement of Apple's many patents." Colligan provided copies of emails sent between himself and Jobs to support this accusation. Tim Cook is slated to give a deposition on this matter, and other high-ranking executives from Google and Intel are also expected to be questioned in the next few weeks. [Via AppleInsider]
Tim Cook ordered to undergo questioning in anti-poaching case
Even though he wasn't CEO at the time, Apple's Tim Cook will be questioned about the company's hiring practices as part of a anti-poaching lawsuit, says a Reuters report. Apple, along with several other tech heavyweights, is embroiled in a civil lawsuit that accuses the company of illegally instituting anti-poaching hiring policies. According to the suit, executives at major companies like Apple, Google, Pixar and others agreed to not poach each other's employees. As part of the agreement, employees would be hired collectively and individual negotiations would not be allowed. Though Cook was not CEO at the time, Judge Lucy Koh said Cook should still be questioned. "I find it hard to believe a COO would have no say over salary and compensation for all employees," Koh said. Google's Eric Schmidt will also be questioned and other executives are slated to participate in upcoming depositions. The civil suit was filed by several ex-employees and follows a DOJ investigation into these hiring practices. Apple, Google and others eventually settled with the DOJ and agreed to stop instituting no solicitation policies. [Image via Flickr member walknboston]
LGJ: A case of tortious interference
Each week Mark Methenitis contributes Law of the Game on Joystiq ("LGJ"), a column on legal issues as they relate to video games: No, it's not a symptom of the dreaded Swine Flu, but there has been a seeming rise in disputes concerning "tortious interference" in the games industry as of late. The most notable example being the Scratch: The Ultimate DJ dispute. Of course, from the first appearance of that curious word "tortious," there's been much confusion; be it over the term's actual meaning or it being incorrectly interchanged with the non-legal word "tortuous" (meaning winding or twisting). The word "tortious" comes from "tort," which is a civil wrong that results in damages. So, "tortious interference," from a definitional standpoint, is when someone intentionally interferes in someone else's business or contractual relationship and causes civil damage. These two varieties of tortious interference are not the same on a more detailed level, however.
Cheyenne Mountain Entertainment sued over unpaid bills
The developers of Stargate Worlds, Cheyenne Mountain Entertainment, has already admitted to cash flow problems. They also have had problems with not paying their employees for at least 25 days of service. Now, problems are looking even worse for the Stargate Worlds developer as they find themselves the target of a lawsuit over unpaid bills.Capital Princess LLC has sued Cheyenne Mountain over an unpaid open account, according to the Arizona Business Gazette on azcentral.com as of March 5th. This just adds to the problems of the unreleased game, which makes us all nervous and wishful that Stargate Worlds will reach completion.We'll keep you informed on this situation as we get more information.
