Belk reaches deal with former CEO and GameStop alleging ‘deceptive practices’
Belk has reached a settlement with its former CEO, another former executive and GameStop Corp. in its lawsuit over alleged “deceptive trade practices.”
A dismissal of all claims with prejudice was filed Tuesday in federal court in North Carolina after all parties signed a settlement agreement Nov. 16, according to documents. Dismissal with prejudice means a plaintiff cannot refile the same claim again in that court. All claims are dismissed and the case is to be closed, according to Tuesday’s court docket.
The Charlotte-based department store chain in August filed a lawsuit against former CEO Nir Patel, former senior vice president of supply chain Tim May and video game store GameStop Corp., accusing them of stealing its employees and payroll information, The Charlotte Observer previously reported.
Just three weeks later, court records showed settlement discussions began and a case dismissal was possible, The Charlotte Observer previously reported.
Court filings on Nov. 17 said all of the parties were satisfying obligations in the settlement agreement and expected Belk to file a voluntary motion to dismiss the case over the next two weeks.
Terms of the settlement weren’t disclosed. Belk officials declined to comment. Attorneys for GameStop, Patel and May did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
Belk’s lawsuit background
Belk accused GameStop executives, including its CEO Matt Furlong, of encouraging “unfair and deceptive trade practices,” according to the lawsuit, by aiding Patel’s poaching of high-ranking Belk employees.
Belk was seeking damages and demanding that Patel, GameStop and May stop sharing confidential employment information and recruiting its employees.
On Oct. 14, GameStop and May filed their responses denying Belk’s allegations with a motion to dismiss the case saying Belk failed to support its claims for “tortious interference or unfair and deceptive trade practices.”
In a separate filing, May admitted emailing “certain documents” from his Belk email to his personal email but denied he stole Belk’s confidential information or intended to use such information prior to his departure from Belk in August 2022, court filings show.
“The relationship between the damages allegedly suffered by Plaintiff and Defendant’s alleged actions is too remote and speculative to form the basis for any recovery against Defendant,” GameStop said in its response.
Belk was represented by Jacob Wharton and Patrick Spaugh of Womble Bond Dickinson.
Patel was represented by Winston & Strawn, LLP.
May was represented by Marc Gustafson of Bell, Davis and Pitt in Charlotte.
GameStop was represented by Robinson, Bradshaw and Hinson in Charlotte and Gibson Dunn & Crutcher.
Leadership changes at Belk
In September, Belk named Don Hendricks as CEO, replacing Patel.
In May, Patel left Belk after less than a year in the role. The same month, Patel was hired as GameStop’s chief operating officer. In August, May left Belk to become vice president of supply chain for GameStop.
In July 2021, Patel, who had worked in various roles at Belk for five years, replaced Lisa Harper five months after the iconic department store chain emerged from bankruptcy. Harper had been CEO since 2016 and was the company’s first CEO outside of the Belk family.
In 2015, New York-based Sycamore Partners acquired the Belk family’s iconic department store chain for $3 billion.
Belk has nearly 300 locations in 16 Southeastern states. Belk has about 17,000 full- and part-time workers at its stores and distribution center, and about 1,200 corporate employees in Charlotte.
This story was originally published November 23, 2022 at 3:15 PM.