Posted on April 30, 2020
A U.S. District Court judge this week issued an order that pumping and processing leader Hagler Systems, Inc. (HSI) will maintain control of all of its intellectual property and proprietary documents in a dispute with a former owner.
Hagler Systems, an engineering company serving clients throughout the United States and Canada, successfully moved for a preliminary injunction preventing a competitor from using its trade secrets. Previously, Hagler Systems had obtained a temporary restraining order in the case.
According to the Order, filed this week in Augusta, “Plaintiffs have shown a substantial likelihood of success that Ben Hagler, Sr. misappropriated HSI’s trade secrets.” Read the full Court Order here.
Hagler Systems, headquartered in Augusta, GA, employs 70+ people in the U.S. and Canada. Its signature projects include custom-engineered dredges such as Beauty, Beast, Kraken, and Hydra. The company works with the dredging, phosphate, aggregate and oil sands markets.
The preliminary injunction, entered by Chief Judge J. Randal Hall of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia, prevents Hagler Group Global LLC, owned by Benjamin Hagler Sr., from using any plans, designs, drawings, specifications, manufacturing instructions, calculations and CAD files from Hagler Systems.
“This is an important ruling that protects the expertise we’ve spent more than 20 years developing,” says Bob Hagler, CEO of Hagler Systems, which has designed and fabricated more than 50 types of booster stations. “We’re proud of the service we provide to our customers, and we’ll continue to focus the full attention of our team on the work we do around the world.”
In 2019, one of Hagler Systems principal owners, Benjamin Hagler, Sr., left the company to form Hagler Group Global, LLC. After a dispute arose, Hagler Systems filed a lawsuit to protect its intellectual property.
According to the court’s order granting the preliminary injunction, Hagler Group; Ben Hagler, Sr.; Benjamin Hagler, Jr.; and Lee Henry are prohibited from utilizing, disclosing, misappropriating, or converting any of Hagler Systems’ trade secrets. They are also required to return all the data removed from Hagler Systems. Hagler Systems is represented by the law firm Fulcher Hagler LLP.
About Hagler Systems Inc.: Hagler Systems, Inc. is an engineering, procurement, and construction company that develops engineering solutions for domestic and international clients in various industries, including oil and gas, dredging, phosphate mining, sand and gravel. Since its founding in 1996, Hagler Systems has developed numerous unique and proprietary designs to respond to the varied demands of clients. Learn more at HaglerSystems.com.
