PHILADELPHIA – A global adhesive materials manufacturer and distributor alleges a Lock Haven man violated an agreement when he left to work for a competitor in Philadelphia.
According to the Oct. 8 filing in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Avery Dennison Corp. filed a civil action against Nathan Brown and Coating and Converting Technologies Corp. (CCT) over an alleged breach of a valid non-competition and confidentiality clause in Brown's employment contract.
Avery claims that Brown, who was hired by the company in 2011 as a research technician and left Avery to take a position with CCT, breached the employment contract by going to work for its direct competitor CCT because of his access to Avery's confidential information.
"Mr. Brown spent nearly a decade in Avery Dennison’s employ developing new specialized adhesives for particular customer applications, identifying appropriate existing adhesives to meet customer project needs, and troubleshooting related customer issues," Avery claims in the suit.
"Fulfilling his new employment responsibilities will necessarily require Mr. Brown to utilize his knowledge, skills, and information regarding the strategic formulation and application of specialized adhesives and other trade secrets and confidential information gained through his employment with Avery Dennison."
In its suit, Avery seeks injunctive relief and damages as well as litigation costs. Avery is represented by Eric Reed and Trisha Stein of Fox Rothschild LLP.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania case number 2:19-cv-04656