An order filed on Monday in the Western District of North Carolina granted summary judgment for defendant Eli Lilly and Company, in a trade secrets case brought by SensorRx, Inc.
According to court filings, in 2018, both the plaintiff and defendant were in the process of developing mobile phone applications that were intended to help patients with tracking and treating migraines. Due to the similarities in their work, defendant Eli Lilly reached out to the plaintiff to discuss a potential partnership. The parties allegedly subsequently provided each other with confidential information regarding each of their mobile phone applications.
Following the exchange of information, Eli Lilly told the plaintiff that they would no longer be pursuing partnership. In 2019, Eli Lilly launched their application, Vega Migraine, in the app store and later sued SensorRx for trade secret misappropriation and breach of contract.
SensorRx also filed the complaint at hand, which asserted causes of action for unfair and deceptive trade practices, fraud and fraudulent concealment, fraudulent inducement, and unjust enrichment. The plaintiff sought to prevent Eli Lilly from using SensorRx’s information and to remove Vega Migraine from the app store.
The court disposed of the plaintiff’s claim for unfair and deceptive trade practices, explaining that SensorRx had not adequately demonstrated Eli Lilly’s liability. Because the trade secrets cause of action no longer stood, according to the court, their claims for fraud/fraudulent concealment, fraudulent inducement, and unjust enrichment were deemed to have been preempted by Indiana’s Uniform Trade Secrets Act (IUTSA) and were also dismissed.
SensorRx’s complaint was dismissed in its entirety with prejudice on Monday by Judge Robert J. Conrad. SensorRx was represented in the suit by Whitfield Bryson and Marshall & Roth. Defendant Eli Lilly was represented by Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath and Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough.
