High Court grants injunction against former staff using individual LinkedIn profiles

A BIRMINGHAM recruitment agency has obtained injunctions against three former employees for continuing to use their individual LinkedIn profiles – because the court agreed the information was owned by the company.

Executive Network Sales (ENS), based on Hagley Road, Birmingham, had launched legal action to stop certain LinkedIn profiles and groups being used and for the information in them to be disclosed.

The agency made an application to the High Court’s Chancery Division for an injunction and order in respect of breach of restrictive covenants and undertakings, misuse of confidential information and breach of database rights in the LinkedIn accounts. 

The former employees used LinkedIn for their day to day work, contacting ENS clients and candidates and setting up LinkedIn groups. Each of the former employees had signed undertakings acknowledging that the LinkedIn profiles, and contacts within them, belong to ENS. Each former employee’s contract of employment also contained several restrictive covenants preventing them from poaching former clients and candidates.

However when they left and joined a competitor, ENS said the trio continued to use the LinkedIn accounts in order to solicit clients and candidates.

Related article: Supreme Court holds Morrisons responsible for when its employee assaulted a customer

ENS, which is part of the £160m-turnover recruitment group Network Group Holdings, and law firm Harrison Clark Rickerbys gathered evidence to establish whether the former employees had misused ENS’ confidential LinkedIn information and had breached the restrictive covenants set out in their contracts of employment in support of the injunction, which was granted.

Adam Finch, partner at Harrison Clark Rickerbys, said the case highlighted “the importance of restrictive covenants and taking steps to ensure that any databases, such as LinkedIn accounts, are properly protected”.

The defendants, which included the individuals’ new employer, were also required to make a contribution towards the costs of the hearing.

Click here to sign up to receive our new South West business news...
Close