An employee has been jailed for 6 weeks for breaching an interim injunction awarded in the case of OCS Group UK v Dadi.
Mr Dadi was an ex-employee of OCS. Mr Dadi had allegedly transmitted confidential information to his home email address, external storage devices and other third parties. OCS obtained an interim injunction prohibiting Mr Dadi from further disclosing, transmitting, destroying or deleting any confidential information. He was also ordered to return all confidential information in his possession and to refrain from discussing the injunction with anyone, except for the purposes of obtaining legal representation.
Subsequently, Mr Dadi telephoned a colleague, and other family members, and told them about the order. He also deleted emails, including over 8,000 from his personal account. Several days later, after taking legal advice, he began to cooperate with OCS’ solicitors and sought to assist OCS to recover its lost data.
Despite his eventual cooperation, Mr Dadi was sentenced to 6 weeks’ imprisonment reflecting the court’s strong disapproval of his actions.
The case is a useful illustration of how interim injunctions can be a powerful tool for employers to protect key confidential information.