Sufficiency of Evidence

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WI Supreme Court

Case Name: North Highland Inc., v. Jefferson Machine & Tool Inc., et al.

Case No.: 2017 WI 75

Focus: Sufficiency of Evidence

Petitioner, North Highland, Inc., seeks review of an unpublished per curiam opinion of the court of appeals affirming a circuit court grant of summary judgment in favor of Frederick A. Wells (“Wells”). The court of appeals determined that the circuit court properly entered summary judgment in favor of Wells. It concluded that North Highland failed to present evidence sufficient to support either its claim of conspiracy to breach a fiduciary duty or its claim of misappropriation of a trade secret. N. Highland Inc. v. Jefferson Mach. & Tool Inc., No. 2015AP643, unpublished slip op., ¶¶11, 26 (Wis. Ct. App. Apr. 28, 2016).

In this review of a grant of summary judgment, we examine the conspiracy and misappropriation claims through the lens of sufficiency of evidence. We determine that North Highland has not met its burden to show that there exists a genuine issue of material fact as to either claim. Consequently, due to insufficiency of evidence, both of North Highland’s claims fail to survive Well’s summary judgment motion. Accordingly, we affirm the decision of the court of appeals affirming the circuit court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of Frederick Wells.

Affirmed

Concur:

Dissent: R.G. Bradley, J., Kelly, J., Roggensack, C.J.

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Attorney Derek A. Hawkins is the managing partner at Hawkins Law Offices LLC, where he heads up the firm’s startup law practice. He specializes in business formation, corporate governance, intellectual property protection, private equity and venture capital funding and mergers & acquisitions. Check out the website at www.hawkins-lawoffices.com or contact them at 262-737-8825.