Military drone maker can proceed with trade secret claims against ex-CTO

Filed 1h ago · Via Courthouse News · The Buffoon Desk

THIS STORY IS SCORED

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Kevin MacLeod · incompetech.com · CC BY 4.0

Photo: ProfessorUltimo · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

A federal judge in Utah refused to dismiss most claims by Red Cat Holdings against George Matus, the former CEO of its Teal Drones unit, and his new venture Vector Defense, over allegations of stolen trade secrets.

Judge Ted Stewart let breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, tortious interference and Computer Fraud and Abuse Act claims proceed, while trimming a non-solicitation claim and a state computer-abuse claim for lack of detail.

Matus sold Teal Drones to Red Cat for $10 million in 2021, stayed on as an executive, then left in 2024 to co-found Vector Defense, which he insists doesn't compete with his old employer's products.

The full dispatch is available from the source below.

✒ FROM THE EDITORIAL DESK

A fellow sells his company, keeps drawing a paycheck from it, then starts a new one down the road doing something he swears is nothing alike. A judge took one look at that story and figured it deserved a jury's attention rather than a quick dismissal. Whether the drones look alike is a question for later, but the arrangement itself never smelled quite right.

Source: Read the original at Courthouse News → Scored: Umbrella Pants · Kevin MacLeod · CC BY 4.0

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