Cognizant, IT industry, Congnisant (Photo: Cognizant)
Nasdaq-listed IT services major Cognizant announced that the firm’s chief financial officer, Jatin Dalal, has reached a settlement in the non-compete lawsuit filed by Wipro. The terms of the settlement, which was reached without any admission of liability by either party, are confidential.
The settlement resolves all pending disputes between Dalal and Wipro, said the company in a statement.
Cognizant has paid $505,087 (around Rs 4.1 crore) in connection with Dalal’s settlement. “The Compensation and Human Capital Committee of the Board of Directors of Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation approved the company’s payment of $505,087 to Jatin Dalal, the company’s chief financial officer, in connection with Dalal’s settlement of the lawsuit and related arbitration brought by his former employer, Wipro Limited (‘Wipro’), which sought to obtain damages and injunctive relief arising out of Dalal’s purported breach of non-compete and confidentiality obligations under certain of Dalal’s compensation agreements with Wipro by joining the company,” said the 8-K filing by Cognizant.
The regulatory filing further stated that the company’s payment covers Dalal’s settlement payment to Wipro as well as reimbursement of his legal fees.
“I am grateful for my journey with Wipro and I am pleased to have this matter behind me. I’m looking forward to continuing to drive Cognizant’s growth agenda while delivering value to our clients, employees, and shareholders,” said Dalal in a statement.
“We are happy to have settled this matter. We are glad this issue has been resolved safeguarding our contractual rights. We wish Jatin well in his future endeavours,” said Saurabh Govil, president and chief human resource officer, Wipro Limited.
Cognizant also confirmed that a similar settlement has been reached regarding the lawsuit between Wipro Limited and Mohammad Haque.
Dalal, who had served with Wipro for 21 years, resigned from the company in September 2023 and in a surprising announcement joined rival Cognizant as CFO in December.
In December, Wipro filed a lawsuit against Dalal at the Bengaluru City civil court, which was referred for arbitration. Wipro accused Dalal of violating the non-compete clause by joining a rival within 12 months of his resignation. Wipro had also filed a similar complaint against Haque, who was senior vice president and head of healthcare and medical devices for the Americas.
First Published: Jul 09 2024 | 5:38 PM IST
