Pasadena woman, Rosenberg man, Webster company accused of client poaching

A company specializing in private aviation services is suing two former employees it claims misappropriated trade secrets to poach clients for a business competitor in Webster.

Universal Weather and Aviation filed a lawsuit on Aug. 1 in the Harris County District Court against Rosenberg resident Joseph Friloux, Pasadena resident Martha Cepeda and Colt International, a firm with headquarters in Webster.

The suit claimed breach of contract, unjust enrichment, conversion, breach of fiduciary duty, misappropriation of trade secrets and tortious interference with contracts.

Universal Weather claimed in the lawsuit that it learned during the past spring that two of its former employees - named as Friloux and Cepeda - violated their employment agreements with the company when they took its confidential information and trade secrets to their new employer, Colt International.

The suit alleges that the two used this information, which included pricing structures, to steal Universal Weather clients.

Universal Weather demaned injunctive relief, attorney fees, court costs and damages. It is being represented in the case by Houston attorneys Laurence Stuart and Cheri Thomas.

Harris County District Court Case No. 2012-43991 is a report on a civil lawsuit filed at the Harris County Courthouse. The details in this report come from an original complaint filed by a plaintiff. Please note, a complaint represents an accusation by a private individual, not the government. It is not an indication of guilt, and it only represents one side of the story.