[DOWNLOAD] "Cole v. Control Data Corp." by United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit * eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free

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eBook details

• Title: Cole v. Control Data Corp.
• Author : United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
• Release Date : January 16, 1991
• Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
• Pages : * pages
• Size : 62 KB

Description

GIBSON, Circuit Judge Control Data Corporation appeals from a judgment entered on a jury verdict in favor of Ervin J. Cole, Jr., on Cole's claims for breach of contract and conversion arising out of a software program that he developed while employed by Control Data. Control Data argues that the district court erred in denying judgment notwithstanding the verdict because the software program was its property, Cole had no right to possess it, Cole destroyed the software himself, and there was no evidence that Control Data intended to deprive him of access to it. Control Data also contends that any partnership between Cole and the company was terminable at will, there was insufficient evidence of damages, and the punitive damage award violates its constitutional rights. Control Data further argues error in the giving of instructions and admission of damages testimony. We affirm the district court's judgment with respect to actual damages, but remand for review of the punitive damage award under Pacific Mutual Life Insurance Co. v. Haslip, 113 L. Ed. 2d 1, 111 S. Ct. 1032 (1991). Action Data Services Group, a division of Control Data, employed Cole as a software programmer. While so employed, Cole developed a software program. About these facts there is little dispute, but from that point on the evidence the parties presented converges only with respect to a few details. Cole testified that he developed, on his own time, a software program that would allow a personal computer to communicate with Action Data's mainframe computer through Control Data's network. Control Data's evidence was that Cole developed the program on Control Data's time using Control Data's materials. Cole's evidence is that an Action Data manager made an oral agreement with him in which Action Data would market the software and share the profits with Cole. Cole states that in late 1986 another Action Data manager ordered him to destroy the software program on the company's premises or be fired, and that Cole did so.

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