Union Pacific Railroad Company v. Brent Mower

219 F.3d 1069 (2000)

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Union Pacific Railroad Company v. Brent Mower

United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
219 F.3d 1069 (2000)

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Facts

Brent Mower (defendant) worked for Union Pacific Railroad Company (Union) from 1970 to 1992. In 1992, Union asked him to resign, and Mower and Union entered into a resignation and consulting agreement in which Mower agreed not to reveal Union’s confidential or privileged information until December 31, 1995. In 1997, another former employee of Union sued Union in Idaho, claiming he had sustained personal injuries during his employment and as a result of Union’s negligence. In 1998, he added Mower as a witness, and Mower submitted a sworn affidavit stating that he would testify about a study he conducted at Union in 1989. Union objected to Mower’s testimony as reflecting privileged information and filed for an injunction in federal court in Oregon. Union argued that allowing Mower to testify in the Idaho action or in any lawsuit would violate Mower’s fiduciary duty to preserve Union’s confidential information. Mower argued that he was free to testify because his resignation agreement with Union had expired in 1995. The district court granted Union’s request for a broad injunction, prohibiting Mower from revealing to any third parties any confidential information he obtained while working for Union. Mower appealed, arguing that the lower court erred in concluding that he owed a continuing duty of confidentiality to Union.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Fisher, J.)

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