How is a fiduciary duty breached?
The determination of whether a fiduciary duty is breached is highly dependent on the facts and circumstances at hand. However, in general, courts will find that an employee has breached his fiduciary duty in instances where the employee has used his knowledge or position of trust for personal gain or for the benefit of a competitor. For example, Virginia courts have found that an officer breached his fiduciary duty by making plans to compete with his current employer, recruiting co-workers to join him in a new venture, and by organizing a mass resignation from the employer. Virginia courts have also found that an employee breached a fiduciary duty by using a former employer’s confidential information for the competitive advantage of a new employer. Given the transient nature of employees in today’s marketplace, a claim for breach of fiduciary duty is an additional weapon that employers can use to mitigate any damages resulting from an unfaithful key employee. As fiduciary duty claims a
