A. & E. Plastik Pak Co., Inc. v. Monsanto Company

This appeal is taken pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1292 (a) (1), from an interlocutory order denying a temporary injunction.

Background

Until December 3, 1963, Monsanto held a patent on an extremely clear, durable type of plastic sheet known as “biaxially oriented polystyrene sheet” and, in the trade, called “OPS”. It remains the major U. S. supplier of this sheet. Soon after the expiration of its patent, A. & E., a producer of finished products from this type of plastic sheet, began attempts to develop a plant to make OPS for itself, using information disclosed by the patent.

In April, 1964, A. & E. hired away from Monsanto one of the latter’s engineers, Merlin Evans, who had worked for Monsanto since graduation from college seven years earlier. In the course of his employment he had been intimately involved in OPS research and development and had had full access to Monsanto’s latest technology in this field. Monsanto held an employment contract with Evans under which he had agreed never to disclose “any secret or confidential information or matter of the company.” Monsanto, fearing that Evans would disclose confidential technology to A. & E., wrote A. & E. warning that it would…