A lawsuit has been filed in the Eastern District of New York by e-commerce company E-Distributors Inc., doing business as AudioSavings, accusing its former employee, Robert Woitkowski, of fraudulent misconduct. The complaint, filed December 30, 2024, also names AAF Solutions LLC and Channing Devane Trick as defendants, accusing them of engaging in fraudulent activities that have caused significant harm to the plaintiff.
Woitkowski, who was hired as Marketing Director for AudioSavings in October 2022, allegedly violated his employment agreement by failing to relocate to New York as required, instead working remotely from Missouri.
During his employment, Woitkowski allegedly focused on areas outside his job description and persuaded the company to switch its Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software under false pretenses, gaining access to confidential information.
The lawsuit claims, “Woitkowski encouraged this transition to open the door for him to acquire more confidential and/or proprietary information about the inner workings of AudioSavings.”
The complaint further alleges that Woitkowski established AAF Solutions LLC in January 2023 without disclosing his ownership interest or family ties to the company.
This, the lawsuit asserts, allowed him to divert business opportunities from AudioSavings while misappropriating trade secrets. “AudioSavings’ employees spent nearly eight months training the employees at Defendant AAF about its proprietary and confidential information,” the lawsuit states.
E-Distributors Inc. is seeking damages exceeding $1 million due to lost competitive advantage and potential customer relationships.
The company is requesting that the court order Woitkowski to return all company property, including a laptop containing sensitive data, enjoin the defendants from using any confidential information obtained through fraudulent means, and award both compensatory and punitive damages for willful misconduct.
Representing E-Distributors Inc., attorneys Evan Newman and Rachel Wrubel of Jacobowitz Newman Tversky LLP are leading the legal pursuit. The case is identified as Case ID 2:24-cv-08889.