Baldwin Risk Partners files poaching suit against Alliant
Posted On: May. 19, 2023 8:59 AM CST
Baldwin Risk Partners LLC units have filed a poaching lawsuit against Alliant Insurance Services Inc. and a former official who abruptly left to join Alliant earlier this month.
The lawsuit, Armfield Harrison & Thomas, LLC and BRP Colleague, Inc. v. Brian King; and Alliant Insurance Services, which was filed in U.S. District Court in Seattle on May 8, charges that partner Brian King resigned from Baldwin unit Armfield Harrison & Thomas without prior notice on May 4, and announced he was joining Alliant on May 5.
The complaint states that Mr. King worked for AHT since August 2014, and joined BRP around December 2020 in conjunction with its acquisition of AHT.
He had authority to sell general lines property, casualty, life, accident and health insurance. It said he signed a confidentiality and nondisclosure agreement with AHT and BRP.
“During the weeks, if not months, leading up to his resignation, King engaged in out of the ordinary communications with the clients he served for Plaintiffs,” the complaint states.
“For example, for several weeks in April 2023, King emailed nearly all of the clients with whom he worked to provide them all their recent files, including submissions, loss runs, ‘summaries’ of their current insurance products and status, and policy numbers, among other information.”
The lawsuit charges Mr. King and Alliant with violation of the Defend Trade Secrets Act and conspiracy; Mr. King with breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty and duty of loyalty; and Alliant with aiding and abetting breach of fiduciary duty and duty of loyalty and tortious interference with contract, business relationships and expectancies.
It seeks a temporary restraining order and preliminary and permanent injunctions, among other demands.
Spokesmen for the companies could not be reached for comment.
Aon PLC sued Alliant and 10 of its former employees Monday in U.S. District Court in Chicago, charging it had launched a “premeditated unlawful raid” on Aon’s facultative reinsurance group.