Sealed Air Corporation has launched a legal battle against a former executive, accusing him of breaching contract and misappropriating trade secrets. On February 12, 2026, Sealed Air Corporation filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina against Peter J. Thomas, a former employee. The company alleges that Thomas violated several laws, including the Defend Trade Secrets Act and state-level trade secret statutes in Wisconsin and North Carolina.
The case revolves around Thomas’s alleged theft of confidential information from Sealed Air during his tenure as Executive Director of Global Purchasing. Sealed Air claims that Thomas downloaded nearly 800,000 files containing sensitive business data onto a personal storage device before leaving the company to join Amcor Flexibles North America, a direct competitor. The plaintiff argues that this unauthorized transfer constitutes “flagrant and egregious violations” of company policy and Thomas’s contractual obligations under a Confidentiality and Restrictive Covenants Agreement (RCA) he signed in 2017.
According to the complaint, Thomas had access to strategic insights into Sealed Air’s procurement strategies and supplier relationships due to his senior leadership role. His responsibilities included managing significant spend categories and developing global procurement strategies across all Sealed Air facilities worldwide. The RCA prohibited him from disclosing or using any confidential information for purposes other than those authorized by Sealed Air.
Sealed Air is seeking multiple forms of relief from the court. These include preliminary and permanent injunctive relief to prevent Thomas from further disclosing or using its trade secrets, as well as an order directing him to return all proprietary information in his possession. Additionally, the company seeks monetary damages, punitive damages up to twice the actual damages for willful misappropriation under federal law, treble damages under North Carolina law, attorneys’ fees, and costs associated with this litigation.
Representing Sealed Air are attorneys John G. McDonald and Austen D. Gilbert from McGuireWoods LLP based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The case is presided over by judges in the Western District of North Carolina under Case ID No. 3:26-cv-00116.
Source: 326cv00116_Sealed_Air_Corporation_v_Thomas_Complaint_Western_District_North_Carolina.pdf
