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Fired Welltower Inc. exec accused of contact with rival

THE BLADE

Fired Welltower Inc. exec accused of contact with rival

Competitor plans to hire Brinker

A top executive who was fired by Welltower Inc. this year has been temporarily prohibited by a court order from interacting with another real estate investment trust that sought to hire him after he allegedly violated a separation agreement with Welltower that included a noncompete clause.

Scott Brinker, who served as the Toledo firm’s chief investment officer for 2½ years, was dismissed in early January when the company elected to eliminate the CIO position. At the time, officials said the move was part of a reorganization initiative meant to streamline decision making among top management.

In a filing this week in Lucas County Common Pleas Court, attorneys for Welltower said HCP Inc., a California-based competitor, has announced plans to hire Mr. Brinker effective Jan. 4, 2018 — the date on which his noncompete clause expires.

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"Through his discussions with HCP, and as a result of his employment with HCP (which may already have commenced formally or informally), Mr. Brinker has breached and will continue to breach the separation agreement,” the suit stated.

The company’s attorneys argued Mr. Brinker, among other things, had disclosed confidential information to HCP and communicated with current Welltower employees in an effort to lure them away from Welltower.

“Mr. Brinker will no doubt continue to do so absent the injunctive relief sought by this complaint,” the filing read.

Common Pleas Judge Gene Zmuda granted a temporary restraining order on Monday, prohibiting Mr. Brinker from communicating directly or indirectly with HCP and from pursuing employment with the company.

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Judge Zmuda also granted a motion for expedited discovery to determine what Welltower information remains in Mr. Brinker’s possession on digital devices by use of a third-party forensics firm, and required him to turn over any documents related to communication with HCP.

The judge also ordered Mr. Brinker to provide a deposition.

Judge Zmuda put a Friday deadline for Mr. Brinker to provide the documents and said the deposition should be completed by May 24. A preliminary injunction hearing is scheduled for May 25.

As of Tuesday, court filings listed no attorney for Mr. Brinker. A phone number listed for him was disconnected.

A message left with HCP Tuesday afternoon was not returned.

In its filing, Welltower said Mr. Brinker was privy to a number of confidential details about Welltower’s operations and pending deals, including an acquisition Welltower had been negotiating to purchase an interest in an investment portfolio for more than $500 million.

Welltower said it has been pursuing the investment for some time, but recently “received a communication from the counterparty that raised questions concerning the status of the transaction.”

In his separation agreement, Welltower agreed to pay Mr. Brinker, over the course of 25 months, his expected base salary of $484,500 and an average of his annual cash bonus for the last three years, worth about $1.1 million.

In addition, they agreed to provide up to $25,000 in outplacement services and up to $10,000 in tax preparation fees.

Contact Tyrel Linkhorn at tlinkhorn@theblade.com or 419-724-6134.

First Published May 17, 2017, 4:00 a.m.

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