Activision has filed legal documents with the Los Angeles Superior Court seeking $400 million in punitive damages from rival publisher Electronic Arts.
It's all part of an ongoing legal battle between Activision and two former studio heads at its Infinity Ward studio, Jason West and Vince Zampella, who were fired from their posts earlier this year.
West and Zampella have since formed Respawn Entertainment under the EA Partners program, leading Activision to seek punitive damages from EA including profits the company would have made had it not been for EA's "interference", costs for rebuilding Infinity Ward, and damages resulting from delays and disruptions.
Activision is also taking action to stop EA benefitting from what it calls "illegal conduct". The company claims that EA attempted to contact West and Zampella while they were still under contract at Activision and draw them away from the company to work on a rival videogame franchise.
Documentation provided by Activision suggests that West and Zampella still had two years left on their contracts when EA approached them, and these contracts effectively prohibited them from working within competing sectors of the videogame industry or luring any Infinity Ward staff to rival studios for the duration of their contracts.
EA's COO, John Schappert began "covertly" contacting West and Zameplla no later than July 30th 2009 according to Activision, which documented evidence of personal e-mails received by West and Zampella from the Creative Arts Agency representing them.
This agency is accused of being West and Zameplla's go-between with EA, playing a critical role in organising a secret meeting at the home of EA's CEO, John Riccitiello on August 28th 2009. EA is said to have flown West and Zameplla to San Francisco via private jet to meet personally with the company's CEO.
An exodus of Infinity Ward staff followed the formation of Respawn Entertainment in April of this year as developers resigned their posts at the Activision studio to join West and Zameplla's new outfit.
EA has issued a response to Activision's legal filing, with a spokesperson for the company telling the LA Times, "This is a PR play filled with pettiness and deliberate misdirection. Activision wants to hide the fact that they have no credible response to the claim of two artists who were fired and now just want to get paid for their work."
Legal documents sourced via Joystiq.
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