High-Tech Employee Class Action Involving Alleged “No-Poaching” Agreements

Analysis Group was retained by a high-technology corporation in relation to a class action involving alleged “no-poaching” agreements among multiple high-technology companies. The plaintiffs alleged that a network of bilateral agreements not to cold-call one another's employees impaired job mobility and depressed compensation for employees at these companies from 2005 through 2009. During the class certification stage, an Analysis Group team including President Pierre Cremieux, Managing Principal Dov Rothman, Principal Mark Lewis, and Vice President Shannon Seitz, along with affiliate Edward Snyder, were retained to provide consulting support for one of the defendants, including critiques of plaintiff and defendant expert reports and general economic opinions related to plaintiffs' claims. After a class was certified, Professor Snyder authored a report on the incentives for, and effects of, one of the bilateral agreements, including a discussion of procompetitive, efficiency-enhancing reasons for such an agreement. The parties subsequently settled.