Name a few claims you'd expect to see in a non-compete case.
Breach of contract. Misappropriation of trade secrets. Tortious
interference with contract and relationships. These are a few
claims commonly pleaded in employee defection cases.
A recent case in Pennsylvania federal court serves as an
important reminder about the importance of carefully
pleading tortious interference claims.
In Council for Educational Travel v. Agata Czopek and Harristown
Development Corporation, the federal court granted a motion to
dismiss because the plaintiff failed to identify a specific
contract or relationship with whom the defendants had interfered.
Observing the elements of a tortious interference claim, the court
stated that the plaintiff must allege the existence of a
contractual relationship with an identified third party:
"Courts have held that because the subject contract actually
exists, a claim must include 'definite, exacting
identification.'" In this case, the
