BENGALURU: Cognizant has agreed to a Rs 4-crore settlement deal in a move to resolve all pending disputes between its CFO Jatin Dalal & his former employer Wipro.
Wipro had sought Rs 25 crore from Dalal for breach of contract after he joined Cognizant as CFO immediately after leaving Wipro in Nov 2023. Cognizant paid Rs 4 crore to Dalal towards the settlement deal though it was not named in an order from a Bengaluru court in Jan, where he invoked his rights to an arbitral tribunal.Cognizant wasn’t named in the arbitration proceedings either.
Cognizant said that the terms of the settlement, which was reached without any admission of liability by either party, are confidential. It also mentioned that the settlement resolves all pending disputes between Dalal and Wipro. “The settlement was reached without admission of liability by either party. The company’s payment covers Dalal’s settlement payment to Wipro as well as reimbursement of his legal fees,” Cognizant said in a filing with the SEC on Tuesday.
Some proxy advisory experts have said that this settlement has raised questions about whether it has set a certain precedent in the industry regarding non-compete contractual obligations.
The Rs 25-crore claim was based on the value of RSUs and PSUs granted to Dalal since he became CFO in 2015. The company had said in the court filing that every one of the grants came with the condition that for a period of 12 months after his last date of employment, Dalal could not directly or indirectly engage with a competitor, could not solicit a Wipro customer to move the existing business to another party, and could not solicit a Wipro employee to be associated with a competitor, supplier, or customer.
Saurabh Govil, president and CHRO at Wipro, said, “We are glad this issue has been resolved, safeguarding our contractual rights.” When TOI asked Wipro whether a compromise between Dalal and Wipro was reached, given that the settlement amount is much smaller compared to what Wipro had sought, the company didn’t respond to TOI’s queries.
Wipro had sought Rs 25 crore from Dalal for breach of contract after he joined Cognizant as CFO immediately after leaving Wipro in Nov 2023. Cognizant paid Rs 4 crore to Dalal towards the settlement deal though it was not named in an order from a Bengaluru court in Jan, where he invoked his rights to an arbitral tribunal.Cognizant wasn’t named in the arbitration proceedings either.
Cognizant said that the terms of the settlement, which was reached without any admission of liability by either party, are confidential. It also mentioned that the settlement resolves all pending disputes between Dalal and Wipro. “The settlement was reached without admission of liability by either party. The company’s payment covers Dalal’s settlement payment to Wipro as well as reimbursement of his legal fees,” Cognizant said in a filing with the SEC on Tuesday.
Some proxy advisory experts have said that this settlement has raised questions about whether it has set a certain precedent in the industry regarding non-compete contractual obligations.
The Rs 25-crore claim was based on the value of RSUs and PSUs granted to Dalal since he became CFO in 2015. The company had said in the court filing that every one of the grants came with the condition that for a period of 12 months after his last date of employment, Dalal could not directly or indirectly engage with a competitor, could not solicit a Wipro customer to move the existing business to another party, and could not solicit a Wipro employee to be associated with a competitor, supplier, or customer.
Saurabh Govil, president and CHRO at Wipro, said, “We are glad this issue has been resolved, safeguarding our contractual rights.” When TOI asked Wipro whether a compromise between Dalal and Wipro was reached, given that the settlement amount is much smaller compared to what Wipro had sought, the company didn’t respond to TOI’s queries.
