CBRE & Colliers Negotiate a Restraining Order Over Hiring of Senior Broker

The Nashville chapters of CBRE and Colliers have negotiated a restraining order that prohibits a Nashville real estate broker from accessing certain files and contacting certain people pertaining to his sudden move from CBRE to Colliers last month, reported The Tennessean.

CBRE’s Nashville office had filed suite last week against self-storage specialist Ashley Compton and his new employer, Colliers International in Nashville, arguing that Compton left CBRE with proprietary company information. Additionally, CBRE accused Colliers International of sending Compton a “to do” list about downloading files before he left CBRE, arguing that a restraining order and a preliminary injunction were needed to block the defendants from using and profiting from CBRE’s trade secrets and other confidential information.

Colliers denied the accusations and pointed out that “at no time during Compton’s tenure with CBRE did CBRE obtain from Compton a non-compete, non-solicitation, or confidentiality agreement.” Colliers also said CBRE’s terms were unacceptable because it would prohibit Colliers from “working on any matter involving entities or individuals who were customers of CBRE,” a provision that “probably includes virtually every potential buyer, seller, landlord, and tenant of commercial real estate of any significance in the major markets in the United States,” the Colliers defense wrote.