Opinion
2012-09-27
EQUITY NOW, INC., Plaintiff–Respondent, v. WALL STREET MORTGAGE BANKERS, LTD., doing business as Power Express Mortgage Bankers, Defendant–Appellant, Power Express Mortgage, Ltd., et al., Defendants.
Jaroslawicz & Jaros LLC, New York (David Tolchin of counsel), for appellant. Stewart Occhipinti, LLP, New York (Charles A. Stewart III of counsel), for respondent.
Jaroslawicz & Jaros LLC, New York (David Tolchin of counsel), for appellant. Stewart Occhipinti, LLP, New York (Charles A. Stewart III of counsel), for respondent.
Order and judgment (one paper), Supreme Court, New York County (Debra A. James, J.), entered September 9, 2011, after a nonjury trial, inter alia, awarding plaintiff damages as against defendant Wall Street Mortgage Bankers, Ltd. (Power*905Express), unanimously affirmed, with costs.
The evidence at trial established that defendant Trejo was aided and abetted by Power Express in misappropriating trade secrets and breaching his fiduciary duty to his former employer by physically taking the lists that were plaintiff's property, refusing to return them in response to plaintiff's demands, and using plaintiff's proprietary information on behalf of Power Express ( see Leo Silfen, Inc. v. Cream, 29 N.Y.2d 387, 392–393, 328 N.Y.S.2d 423, 278 N.E.2d 636 [1972],Kaufman v. Cohen, 307 A.D.2d 113, 125, 760 N.Y.S.2d 157 [1st Dept. 2003] ).
Plaintiff was entitled to damages for the profits it lost as a result of defendant's conduct ( Hertz Corp. v. Avis, Inc., 106 A.D.2d 246, 251, 485 N.Y.S.2d 51 [1st Dept. 1985] ).
We have considered defendant's remaining arguments and find them unavailing.