Until that process is complete later this week, were holding on sending any additional employees home for testing or work-from-home moves.. Mot., Apr. The lawsuit, filed Monday in federal court in Cincinnati, seeks to hold Total Quality Logistics responsible for the theft last month of financial information, includingbank account and Social Security numbers andtax ID numbers from companies with whom it does business. Total Quality Logistics facing $5 million lawsuit over 'massive' data }); Tom Millikin, corporate communications manager of TQL, told FreightWaves at the time that he wasnt sure of the exact number of carriers who may have been affected by the security breach in its IT systems but was working with law enforcement and a cybersecurity firm to identify which carriers and customers may be impacted.. Then, when Michael Henshall left TQL in June 2018, he passed the Sunland account over to Daniels. Speech First, Inc. v. Schlissel, 939 F.3d 756, 763 (6th Cir. Aaron Cox VP - Software Manager. googletag.pubads().enableSingleRequest(); Inj. They were out for blood! 2 at 2). This "short and plain statement" requirement, in part, serves a notice function, alerting the defendant not only to the nature of the claim against it, but also to the "grounds upon which [the claim] rests." to Prelim. 1:2019cv01052 - Document 15 (S.D. During 2020 and continuing into this year, Sunland's book of business with TQL steadily shrunk. We are going to argue these motions on July 13, and at that time, the judge indicated he was going to establish a new trial date in the case, Meizlish told FreightWaves. That same day, TQL also filed a motion for a preliminary injunction and temporary restraining order. Contact Information. This is all that is needed to plausibly allege damages for a breach of contract claim. Given the nature of the hearing, the Court considers both the information from the Complaint and the evidence from that hearing to be preliminary in nature. On June 29, 2020, Daniels voluntarily resigned from TQL. Timothy Denton, vice president of corporate communications and media relations at USI, and TQLs Brown did not respond to FreightWaves requests for comment. window.googletag = window.googletag || {cmd: []}; }); Wednesday is Jacob Pattersons last day at PBJ Express, a small trucking firm in Joplin, Missouri, where he has worked for the past 15 months. He said the problem for people in his brothers position is that they cant read the contract to know what they can or cant do. Defendants move to dismiss both counts on the ground that TQL's Complaint fails to plausibly allege that Daniels "failed to perform"i.e., that Daniels breached his non-compete agreement. Id. For the reasons below, the Court GRANTS IN PART AND DENIES IN PART Defendants' Motion to Dismiss and DENIES TQL's Motion for a Preliminary Injunction. Ohio May. (TQL's Exs. Resources and Tools. window.googletag = window.googletag || {cmd: []}; Total Quality Logistics, LLC v. OTC Logistics LLC - casetext.com 2002) (citing United Food & Com. In fact, the Supreme Court expressly rejected the "possibility" standard as "too lenient," and instead required a higher showing on the grounds that a preliminary injunction is an "extraordinary remedy" with the dangerous potential to unjustly restrain the subject's liberty. at 9(f)). I had a stressful situations going on and they were so patient with me and did help me through this. Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678. But the Court is in no position to resolve that issue today. Total Quality Logistics Company Profile - Supply Chain 24/7 As discussed above, however, TQL might have plausibly alleged that Daniels is violating his non-compete, but it has not submitted enough evidence to establish a "substantial likelihood" that is the case. While Daniels apparently was taking these steps to form his new LLC, TQL was busy trying to figure out why it had experienced a significant drop in business with respect to one of its repeat customers, Sunland Trading, Inc. TQL had long undertaken efforts to attract Sunland's business. Rather, both parties focus their arguments on the harm that might occur if the Court were to grant the requested preliminary injunction. All rights reserved. Read Total Quality Logistics LLC v. Logistic Dynamics, LLC, 1:20-cv-00669, see flags on bad law, and search Casetext's comprehensive legal database . (TQL's Exs. Secondarily, Defendants argue that the Court should dismiss TQL's claim for damages because the Complaint did not plausibly allege the "damages [TQL] has suffered as a result of Daniels's alleged breach." Total Quality Logistics - Transportation/trucking/railroad - Overview RTS Financial. And, although it is certainly possible that Sunland transferred its business to EDA Logistics, the Court has yet to see evidence suggesting a "strong likelihood" that is the case. Your name will not be used without your permission in a follow-up article. TQL has also come under fire for as many as 700 employees that were let go over a three-day period in mid-March amid the coronavirus pandemic. But the "mere possibility of success" is not enough to justify a preliminary injunction. googletag.pubads().enableSingleRequest(); If you have a news tip or story idea, send her an email to, Copyright 2023, All Rights Reserved, FreightWaves, Inc, Judge delays trial date in TQL overtime class-action lawsuit, Loaded & Rolling (Enterprise Fleet News/Analysis), joined a class-action complaint against TQL f, that were let go over a three-day period in mid-March amid the coronavirus pandemic, Trial dates rescheduled because of COVID-19. Of course, the nature of the requisite "injury" varies somewhat for the two forms of relief TQL seeks. Because Daniels founded EDA, TQL reasons, he "inevitably will use [trade secret] information for his and EDA's benefit." And courts have held that it is overbroad and cant be enforced as written. Ken Oaks and Ryan Legg co-founded TQL in 1997, but the two parted ways 16 years ago. On the other hand, the public has an interest in free and fair competition. window.googletag = window.googletag || {cmd: []}; googletag.enableServices(); Defendants are correct that this inference alone might not be enough to prove that Daniels is misappropriating trade secrets. 462 S 4th St. . googletag.cmd.push(function() { His suit, filed in Clermont County, Ohio, alleges the case demonstrates the extraordinary measures TQL will take to harm the career prospects of an employee who has the temerity to leave the company.. }); TQL uniformly does not make exceptions to the agreement, including the one-year non-compete and non-solicitation terms, a TQL attorney told a former employee via email. Of course, the plausibility of any inference will depend on the Court's "common sense and the strength of competing explanations" for why Daniels apparently started EDA. See Fred Siegel Co. v. Arter & Hadden, 707 N.E.2d 853, 858 (Ohio 1999) (listing the elements of tortious interference with a contract). In the meantime, Defendants filed a 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss. Corp., 172 F. Supp. TQL: 'Bully On The block'? - Yahoo Finance