Hilton Hotels Corp. has placed executives Ross Klein and Amar Lalvani on paid administrative leave, pending an internal review of corporate espionage claims leveled against them last week in a lawsuit filed by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. In addition, Hilton has suspended work on its fledgling Denizen chain, which Starwood alleges was conceived using stolen documents from its W Hotel brand.
Hilton also acknowledged receipt of a federal grand jury subpoena from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York requesting documents related to its employment of Klein, Lalvani and other former Starwood employees, as well as to allegedly stolen materials that Hilton returned to Starwood in February 2009.
Did you enjoy this article? Click here to subscribe to the magazine.