TQL is a shady and unfair company to do business with how do you think they have had expedential growth. Get the latest business insights from Dun & Bradstreet. We have blocked their phone numbers from ringing in our phone system. These facts, then, raise a plausible inference that EDA is interfering with the NCA between Daniels and TQL. Accordingly, whether a preliminary injunction serves these public interests is also too speculative to justify such extraordinary relief. Read more. window.googletag = window.googletag || {cmd: []}; Legg later formed MegaCorp Logistics, which has a nonsolicitation agreement. (Compl., Doc. The next day, March 9, 2021, TQL re-filed its motion for a preliminary injunction in this Court. As there is little evidence that Daniels is violating his non-compete, any resulting injury to TQL is necessarily speculative, as well. 2, Ex. to Prelim. The amount in damages exceeds $5 million, according to the lawsuit. (Compl., Doc. As discussed above, TQL's evidence on that front creates a plausible inference that Daniels may have violated, and may be violating, his non-compete, but it falls short of providing "clear and convincing evidence" that he is doing so. Although these facts suffice to create a plausible inference that Daniels is actually competing against TQL, the only solid conclusion that the Court can draw from the evidence provided at this stage is that Daniels is at least preparing to compete with TQL. For over 15 years, we've specialized in arranging the transportation of full truckload shipments for thousands of companies across the country and various industry segments. (Doc. As the Court mentioned at the hearing, TQL's decision to enforce lawful non-compete agreements is appropriate, at least so long as TQL is not hiring and then terminating employees with the goal of reducing the work force available to competitors. 's, Inc. v. Int'l Bus. Casetext, Inc. and Casetext are not a law firm and do not provide legal advice. Need some recourse against brokers. 1977)). TQL, however, has not made such a showing here. 204 talking about this. But, because TQL presented evidence at the preliminary injunction hearing suggesting that it may be able to supplement this claim, that dismissal is WITHOUT PREJUDICE. Aero Fulfillment Servs., Inc. v. Tartar, No. Answered Apr 10, 2023. googletag.cmd.push(function() { Inj. 1:18-cv-00796, see flags on bad law, and search Casetext's comprehensive legal database . This trend continued into the third quarter, which is the quarter right after Daniels left TQL. The Complaint provides sufficient facts to plausibly allege that Daniels breached the non-compete agreement. Representing a wide variety of clients, the firm has particular strength and focus representing business in a variety of areas including transportation, health care, public sector, financial services, and energy industries. Accordingly, the Court will exclude $2,112.64 in billings that the Court deems useable in related litigation. Specifically, TQL points to evidence that (1) Sunland, one of Daniels' customer accounts at TQL, has significantly decreased its book of business with TQL after Daniels' departure; and (2) 721 Logistics copied Daniels on two emails concerning a shipment from Sunland. A day before the terminations began, Oaks sent out two company-wide emails addressing TQLs work-from-home bandwidth progress as federal and state health agencies were urging companies to allow employees to work remotely in an effort to curb the spread of the highly contagious coronavirus. Two days after Patterson filed suit against TQL, the freight brokerage filed a motion seeking to add PBJ Express, a 43-truck carrier, to the suit, despite Patterson tendering his resignation. Start with TQL's claim that Daniels breached his non-compete. The Court noted earlier that TQL's Complaint had alleged sufficient facts to raise a plausible inference that Daniels was competing against TQL as part of his new position with EDA logistics. 8). TQL became suspicious that this drop in business occurred because Daniels may have used connections he developed at TQL to solicit Sunland's business after his departure. The Complaint Fails To Plausibly Allege That EDA Logistics Tortiously Interfered With TQL's Business Relationships. The complaint, filed in September 2010 in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, claims that more than 4,500 employees working at TQLs headquarters in Cincinnati from September of 2008 to mid-April of 2016 were cheated out of millions of dollars in overtime pay while working at the second-largest freight brokerage in the U.S. Also named in the complaint is Ken Oaks, chief executive and co-founder of Cincinnati-based TQL. Meizlish said he expects the Illinois class-action case over former TQL employees overtime complaint to go to trial before his. (Id. For the reasons discussed above, the Court GRANTS IN PART AND DENIES IN PART Defendants' Motion to Dismiss TQL's Complaint (Doc. When Daniels left TQL, it triggered his one-year obligation under the non-compete and non-solicitation agreements. Id. googletag.cmd.push(function() { Had TQL taken the well-known risk of cyber-intrusion seriously and adequately tested, auditedand invested in its IT systems, and adequately trained its staff," the lawsuit says, the data breach would never have occurred.. There is no clearly defined line. googletag.defineSlot('/21776187881/fw-responsive-main_content-slot5', [[728, 90], [468, 60], [320, 50], [300, 100]], 'div-gpt-ad-1665767778941-0').defineSizeMapping(gptSizeMaps.banner1).addService(googletag.pubads()); Resources and Tools. He submitted his resignation two weeks ago after discovering that his former employer, Cincinnati-based Total Quality Logistics, intended to file a motion seeking to add PBJ as a defendant in an ongoing lawsuit against him over allegations he violated the terms of his noncompete agreement after leaving the United States second-largest freight brokerage in April 2021. 2023 www.cincinnati.com. Secondly, TQL provided evidence that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration granted the newly formed EDA Logistics "broker" motor carrier authority. Products & Services Logistics Services, Full Truckload, Intermodal, Less Than Truckload. However, this isnt the only class-action lawsuit TQLs legal team is fighting regarding the overtime issue and claims by former employees that the brokerage violated the FLSA. The existence, and extent, of TQL's injury, however, again depends on whether TQL can demonstrate that Daniels is currently violating his non-compete. 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. Rather, the Court must rely on the evidence that TQL did present. Detail"). Inj. But what is a lonely small trucking company to do but to sacrifice >$1000 claim to receive $25-32k worth of freight pulled months ago. 1:2019cv01052 - Document 15 (S.D. Selecting among these various competing possibilities requires information, which is what discovery is designed to facilitate. Follow Total Quality Logistics on social media. On January 4, 2016, Daniels landed a job as a Logistics Account Executive Trainee with TQL, a company that provides freight transportation and logistics services. Council, Inc., 555 U.S. 7, 22 (2008). I refuse to do any business with this company. First, TQL submits that Daniels founded EDA Logistics, an LLC organized for conducting freight arrangement services. (Bostwick Test., Hr'g on Prelim. 1997) (en banc)). Hr'g, Ex. }); Pete Patterson has been involved in his brothers legal battle since May 2021 over TQLs claims that Jacob Patterson had violated his noncompete when he went to work for asset-based carrier PBJ Express. TQL posted revenues of around $3.6 billion in 2019. (Id. Inj. But the agreement further provides that the one-year period would be tolled for any period of time during which Daniels was in violation of his obligations under those terms. Hr'g, Exs. (Bostwick Test., Hr'g on Prelim. 3). Truckload carrier U.S. Xpress announces 2nd round of corporate layoffsApex Capital blames malware attack for unplanned system outageSlync.io fires CEO Chris Kirchner, strips board chairmanship, This firm TQL stole my money but I had to hire ( REMOTESPYTECH ) to help me recover them. All rights reserved. The big problem with TQLs noncompete is that its drafted so broadly, everyone knows its overbroad and wont be enforced as written, said Pete Patterson. googletag.pubads().collapseEmptyDivs(); What is the vacation policy like at Total Quality Logistics (TQL)? Inj. Bostwick testified that Daniels' primary responsibility in those various roles was to manage customer accounts. I need to desperately access my husbands whatsapp to find out what as been keeping him away from home but no hacker was down to assist me until I contacted wisetechacker @gmail com I actually have been able to get access to my husbands whatsapp messages and gotten all evidence I needed for this divorce. TQL then concludes that "[u]pon information and belief Daniels is currently performing freight brokerage services in violation of his NCA." Bridgestone Am. Hackers, the company said, gained access to information in some of our carrier accounts.. Finally, the Court considers the effect of a preliminary injunction on the public interest. googletag.cmd.push(function() { 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. Aaron Beeman Business Development Manager. Do you have a story to share? var gptSlot = googletag.defineSlot('/21776187881/FW-Responsive-Main_Content-Slot1', [[728, 90], [468, 60], [300, 100], [320, 50]], 'div-gpt-ad-b1-i-fw-ad-1').defineSizeMapping(gptSizeMaps.banner1).setCollapseEmptyDiv(true).addService(googletag.pubads()); Ex-employees claim they did not receive severance packages and that their health benefits were canceled within hours after they were terminated. 1-1). C-060071, 2007 WL 120695, at *2, 4 (Ohio Ct. App. 9, "Sunland Revenue Chart"). This happened to me in 2015. Those sending messages critical of the companys leadership or complaints to managers about not being able to work remotely were added to a list of those to be fired, despite their title or value to TQL, one employee told FreightWaves. Those arguments are not particularly relevant here, as the Court has already held that there is no "substantial likelihood of success on the merits" that can justify a preliminary injunction. That same day, TQL also filed a motion for a preliminary injunction and temporary restraining order. At the time of the data breach, TQL President Kerry Byrne stated that hackers may have gained access to carriers tax ID numbers, bank account numbers and invoice information, including amounts and dates.. Hr'g, Ex. googletag.pubads().collapseEmptyDivs(); 3, #80-81). 8, #96). 860, 861 (6th Cir. My brother left TQL and did not want to do anything improper, so he didnt go to work for a broker. As of 2016, Oaks was listed as Cincinnatis wealthiest person, with a net worth estimated at $980 million, according to Forbes. [B]eyond that, without speaking to TQL, Im not authorized to say anything, other than to direct you to the publicly available docket, Wiles told FreightWaves. The company refers to the new trainees as Logistics Account Executive Trainees (LAET). googletag.pubads().enableSingleRequest(); to Dismiss, Doc. at 9(b)(i)). 3); and (2) Defendants EDA Logistics ("EDA") and Ryan Daniels' (collectively, "Defendants") Motion to Dismiss TQL's Complaint (Doc. They threaten with a Carrier411 write up that could bankrupt a company. Ex-employees claim they did not receive severance packages and that their health benefits were canceled within hours after they were terminated. Its fast-paced, energetic s TQL Total Quality Logistics Tomaydo-Tomahhdo, LLC v. Vozary, 82 N.E.3d 1180, 1184 (Ohio Ct. App. I lost my traction in the industry and have never really recovered. 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. gptAdSlots.push(gptSlot); 1:17-CV-150, 2018 WL 1891354, at *7 (S.D. Try Casetext free Opinion CA2020-09-056 12-06-2021 TOTAL QUALITY LOGISTICS, LLC, Appellant, v. INTEGRITY EXPRESS LOGISTICS, LLC, Appellee. The Court next examines whether a preliminary injunction (or lack thereof) would create a risk of substantial harm to others. 12, 2010) ("There is no requirement that contract damages be pled with detailed specificity. (Compl., Doc. googletag.pubads().enableSingleRequest(); at 9(b)(vi)). (Compl., Doc. 2015) (citations omitted). Sources familiar with the matter allege the mass firings were related to issues with setting up remote access using Citrix, the companys virtual network, and were not the result of employee underperformance issues, as Oaks and Tom Millikin, corporate communications manager of TQL, told FreightWaves at the time. His company has filed litigation related to a nonsolicitation agreement only once in its 13-year-history. (Id. Inj. Id. Call Us 24/7/365 800.580.3101 Logistics Services Carriers Jobs Moves That Matter About Us Contact Us Get a Quote Track Shipment Request a Login LOGIN WORK WITH THE BEST Our mission is to be the leading service provider in the transportation industry and continue to build a company to be proud of. Gonzales v. Nat'l Bd. Total Quality Logistics 462 S 4th St, Louisville, Kentucky, United States, 40202-3466 Sharing is caring! to Prelim. Request A Quote WORK WITH US LOGISTICS SERVICES The Court first addresses Defendants' Motion to Dismiss, and then turns to TQL's Motion for a Preliminary Injunction. Hr'g, Ex. Again, discovery, not a motion to dismiss, is the proper avenue to address any missing specifics about the existence, and amount, of any such damages. Then, on September 14, 2020, it appears that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration granted the newly formed EDA Logistics a form of motor carrier authority called "broker" authority. 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. 1:21-cv-164 (S.D. Inj. Of course, the nature of the requisite "injury" varies somewhat for the two forms of relief TQL seeks. These factual allegations must support a claim that is "plausible on its face."
