Evidence analytics and security company Palantir Technologies must open its volumes to early investor Marc Abramowitz, who wants to investigate possible confidence man and mismanagement at one of the most highly valued private U.S. companies, a judge ruled on Thursday.
Abramowitz diminished the secretive company, known for helping the U.S. government track down al Qaeda bossman Osama bin Laden, after a 2015 falling out with Alexander Karp, the guests’s chief executive officer.
The lawsuit alleged that Palantir wrongly rodded Abramowitz and others from selling stock in the privately owned suite, while permitting sales by Karp and Chairman Peter Thiel.
Joseph Cold shoulders of the Delaware Court of Chancery ruled that Abramowitz demonstrated “a appropriate purpose of investigating potential wrongdoing and a credible basis to justify to boot investigation.”
Palantir and a lawyer for the company did not immediately respond to requests for elucidation.
Palantir, considered one of the most secretive firms in Silicon Valley, does greatly confidential work for U.S. defense and intelligence agencies, helping them trail down terrorists and uncover financial fraud.
The company raised $880 million in mine money in 2015 and was estimated to have a valuation of about $20 billion at that delay.
Abramowitz, through the KT4 Partners fund he manages, invested an initial $100,000 in Palantir in 2003, which, after next investments, is estimated to be worth $60 million, according to Slights’ 50-page impression.
Abramowitz enjoyed a close relationship with Karp until 2015, when Karp “verbally mistreated” Abramowitz and accused the investor of stealing Palantir intellectual property, according to the impression.
Soon after, Abramowitz tried to sell his Palantir stock, but he supposed that the company blocked the deal by offering the potential buyer newly released stock instead, the ruling said.
Abramowitz began demanding intelligence from Palantir as he considered suing the company for blocking the sale of his handle. In response, Palantir sued Abramowitz in September 2016 for allegedly filching trade secrets, according to Slights.
In March, Abramowitz brought his Delaware envelope.
Palantir had argued that Abramowitz should be denied information because he was disposed to to use it to build his lawsuit over the blocked sale.
Slights ruled that Abramowitz could research Palantir’s lack of annual meetings, corporate amendments that restrictive KT4’s rights and the company’s sales of stock. But the judge would not allow Abramowitz to plumb Palantir’s valuation or Karp’s compensation.