Following a
three week trial earlier this year, the High Court today handed down Judgment
in the high-profile insurance sector ‘team move’ claim, Alesco & Ors
v Ardonagh & Ors.
Mr Justice
Freedman dismissed the Claimants’ conspiracy claim, finding that there had been
no such conspiracy, and that the departing employees were dissatisfied and were
bound to have left the AJ Gallagher group in any event. In the course of his
Judgment, the Judge covered a number of critical issues in the employee
competition field, including lawful and unlawful means conspiracy, the scope of
the duty of fidelity, the circumstances when a breach of fiduciary duty might
arise, and the enforceability of clauses requiring employees to disclose offers
of employment from competitors.
The Judgment can be found here.
Amy Rogers
(led by David Craig KC of Essex Court and leading Jamie Susskind) represented
the First, Second and Third Defendants, instructed by Michael Anderson of Lewis
Silkin; Richard Leiper KC and Michael Lee represented the Fourth Defendant,
instructed by Daniel Naftalin of Mishcon de Reya; and Jane McCafferty KC and
Simon Forshaw represented the Fifth Defendant, instructed by Peter de Maria of
Doyle Clayton.
