A lawsuit filed by SunPower with the United States District Court for the Northern District of California against SunEdison has been dismissed on the grounds of inadequate evidence.
In June, the solar system manufacturer alleged that more than 20 of its employees from Spain and the U.S. left between 2011 and 2014 to join "direct" competitor, SunEdison. It added that before leaving, several of its former employees copied a large amount of data, including trade secrets.
A total of 14 causes of action were filed, including for computer fraud and abuse, trade secret misappropriation and breach of contract. SunPower was reportedly seeking any profits or revenues allegedly obtained by the colleagues and SunEdison as a result of any disclosure or use of trade secrets or proprietary information.
In a statement released today, however, SunEdison said, "SunEdison moved to dismiss the claims arising under the CFAA [Computer Fraud and Abuse Act], SunPower's only basis for federal jurisdiction. The court granted the motion, ruling that SunPower failed to adequately plead a CFAA claim."
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Becky Beetz
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SunPower has been known to bully smaller solar energy companies who can’t defend themselves against its teams of lawyers. It’s pretty disgusting.