In a very interesting recent Court of Appeal decision the Court has upheld a $2,000 damages award for breach of a restraint of trade provision by setting up in opposition and distributing material.
Of greater significance was that the Court increased the damages from $1,000 to $20,000 for copying operational materials line by line in breach of the duty to keep materials confidential. The Court held this was a flagrant breach justifying the 2000% increase in damages. The defendant company was liable under the Copyright Act and the individual who breached the confidentiality was ordered to pay $20,000 exemplary damages.
These damages were awarded because actual damages were slight but the Court found it necessary to punish the flagrant breaches by the defendant who had copied the material and then aggravated matters with a denial of that copying.
Really great to see the Courts upholding the business owner's interests in their intellectual property from those who feel they have a right to make use of those materials for their own gain and hitting the defendant hard to discourage similar behaviour from others.
If you need help drafting contracts to protect your interests, or enforcing them, give me a call on 04 473 6850.
Alan Knowsley
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