August 16, 1996 |
Technology, Injunction
Our client was an LLC in Texas which operated one of the first “body scan” clinics. Their business partner, from California, had provided the computer software. In the course of a dispute over control of the LLC, the California partner had inserted a “timebomb” into the software, threatening to disable to software unless the Texas partners agreed to new business terms. We obtained an injunction against the California partner under 18 USC 1030, the Federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. That Act is generally considered to be a criminal law, but it has specific civil enforcement provisions. We were credited with the first injunction ever granted under that Act in a civil litigation matter.