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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowA Fishers-based recruiting agency is suing its former employee for allegedly running a competing separate business and stealing confidential information from the agency for her benefit.
The lawsuit, filed Feb. 12 in the Indiana Commercial Court in Hamilton County, accuses defendant Jennifer Schmitt of breaching her non-solicitation and confidentiality agreement with Top Talent LLC by simultaneously running her own business, Career Headhunter LLC.
A business registration filed with the Indiana Secretary of State lists the principal address for Career Headhunter as 1209 E. Oak St., Elwood. Contact information for Schmitt or her company could not be immediately located.
Schmitt signed the agreement when she was hired in August 2024, agreeing to not disclose or utilize Top Talent’s confidential information for outside purposes or use any of the agency’s information for personal benefit or for the benefit of another entity, according to the lawsuit.
Schmitt was hired as a national account manager, tasked with running the agency’s construction and engineering division. In her role, she had direct access to the agency’s business plans, client information,and other confidential information.
The same month she was hired, she entered into the previously mentioned confidentiality agreement with Top Talent, which stated she “shall not, at any time, during or after employment with [Top Talent], directly or indirectly, disclose, communicate, or make accessible to any person or entity, or otherwise utilize in any fashion, any Confidential Information, unless and except otherwise required by law.”
But the lawsuit alleges that during her entire employment at Top Talent, Schmitt was running her own competing business and sent numerous emails to her personal email account containing Top Talent documents, confidential information, and other Top Talent property.
The lawsuits says Schmitt also has not returned Top Talent’s property and confidential information since she was terminated from the agency in late January.
Top Talent is suing Schmitt for breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty of loyalty. The agency is also suing Schmitt’s company for aiding and abetting breach of fiduciary duty and unjust enrichment.
Top Talent is seeking injunctive relief, asking the court to enter an injunction enjoining Schmitt from breaching the contract. The agency is also asking the court to order Schmitt to return the documents she took.
The case is Top Talent, LLC v. Career Headhunter LLC, Jennifer Schmitt, 29D02-2502-CE-001617.
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