Proskauer settles with ex-COO accused of stealing sensitive information before new job

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Proskauer settles with ex-COO accused of…

Law Firms Proskauer settles with ex-COO accused of stealing sensitive information before new job

By Debra Cassens Weiss

February 5, 2024, 11:47 am CST

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Proskauer Rose has reached a confidential settlement with a former chief operating officer accused of downloading sensitive information before a planned move to a competitor law firm. (Image from Shutterstock)

Proskauer Rose has reached a confidential settlement with a former chief operating officer accused of downloading sensitive information before a planned move to a competitor law firm.

U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres of the Southern District of New York dismissed Proskauer’s lawsuit against former COO Jonathan O’Brien on Friday after the parties reached an agreement in principle. On the same day, Torres issued a permanent injunction to bar O’Brien from keeping or using Proskauer’s “proprietary, confidential and/or trade secret information.”

Law360 reported on the dismissal order and injunction. Reuters, Bloomberg Law and Law.com also have coverage of the settlement, made public in a legal filing on Thursday.

Proskauer had accused O’Brien in January 2023 of acting in a “brazen and malicious” manner by downloading 34 gigabytes of data.

He was also accused of printing a “black book binder” showing partner compensation and performance, as well as allocation of the firm’s profits. He had claimed that he took the information with him, so that he could work while on a vacation in Africa.

The firm also alleged in a revised May 2023 suit that O’Brien withheld raises and promotions for key Proskauer employees to spur resentment and make them amenable to joining his would-be new firm, Paul Hastings. Proskauer also alleged that O’Brien defrauded the firm through “pervasive and protracted” expense abuses and reimbursement fraud.

Paul Hastings withdrew the job offer when Proskauer’s suit became public.

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