Lawson-Hawks Ins., Inc. v. McVey Ins. Broker, Inc. CA6

I. INTRODUCTION

Respondent Lawson-Hawks Insurance, Inc. (LHI) employed Meyer Komar as an insurance agent for several years. After discovering that Komar1 was also working for appellant McVey Insurance Broker, Inc. (McVey Broker), LHI filed this action alleging that Komar had used LHI’s confidential and trade secret information to solicit LHI’s customers for McVey Broker. LHI later amended the complaint to substitute appellants McVey Insurance Agency (McVey Agency), Pamela Jean Stephens, and James Paul McVey for three Doe defendants. The trial court subsequently entered the defaults of defendants McVey Broker, McVey Agency, Stephens, and James Paul McVey (hereafter James McVey). A prove- up hearing was held and on April 24, 2012, the trial court entered a default judgment in

1 Komar is not a party to this appeal. LHI’s favor. The default judgment awarded LHI compensatory damages of $25,000 against each defendant, attorney’s fees of $144,033, and costs of $16,497. The trial court subsequently modified the April 24, 2012 judgment to award total compensatory damages of $25,000. On appeal, defendants contend that the default judgment must be reversed because the factual allegations…