August 2024

Temporary injunction prohibiting competitive actions by a member of the Board of Directors of a corporation, with the threat of personal detention

The Athens Court of First Instance issued an injunction against a director and shareholder of a public company, prohibiting him from engaging in anticompetitive activities. The court's decision was influenced by the family nature of the company, whose two shareholders are related by blood. The defendant holds a minority stake in the company and engaged in a series of acts outside the corporate sphere that were related to the company's business purpose.

With this injunction, the defendant was ordered, under the threat of a fine of 1,000 euros and 10 days of personal detention for each violation, to refrain, either personally or through intermediaries, whether natural or legal persons, from carrying out competitive activities identical or similar to the company's business activities, as well as from carrying out preparatory acts for such competitive activities, in particular advertising, activating and using websites, and soliciting customers.

This decision is noteworthy as it recognizes the need to immediately curb the competitive actions of the minority shareholder, while the threat of personal detention significantly increases the binding nature and thus the effectiveness of the injunction.