Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has won a permanent gag order and agreed to drop its lawsuit against a fired security employee who detailed to media what he said were the retailer's surveillance practices.
A Benton County judge Monday granted Wal-Mart a permanent injunction against Bruce Gabbard, a technician who alleged that a manager pressured him to find security leaks.
The injunction replaces a previous restraining order Wal-Mart had against Gabbard and bars him from further disclosing trade secrets and other confidential information.
Gabbard and his supervisor, Jason Hamilton, were fired last year after recording phone calls to and from a New York Times reporter and intercepting pager messages. Wal-Mart said the pair violated company policy.
He later alleged in an interview with the Wall Street Journal that he was part of a surveillance operation that spied on company workers, critics, vendors and consultants.
Sharon Weber, Wal-Mart spokeswoman, declined to comment on the court's order, saying only that, "As far as were concerned, this filing should bring the matter to a close."
Circuit Court Judge John Scott ruled at Wal-Mart's request that the company can still pursue a lawsuit if Gabbard violates the order.
Wal-Mart alleged in its lawsuit that Gabbard revealed "confidential information about Wal-Mart security systems and operations" and "highly confidential information about Wal-Mart's strategic planning." It sought unspecified damages.
Gabbard may still posses confidential and potentially damaging information, the filing suggests. Like the previous restraining order, the injunction requires Gabbard to turn over any trade secret information that he may have or has given to lawyers, family members, friends and others.
Gabbard claimed in an April 2007 article in the Wall Street Journal that he worked on a team called the Threat Research Analysis Group, a unit of Wal-Mart's Information Systems Division. Gabbard further detailed surveillance activities that he said included infiltrating an anti-Wal-Mart group, investigating shareholders at McKinsey & Co. and monitoring computer activities of anyone connected to the retailers computer network, including suppliers.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
