EY Must Face Ryan LLC’s Tortious Interference With Business Suit

Ernst & Young LLP couldn’t shake off Ryan LLC’s claim that it tortiously interfered with Ryan’s business relations when it used Ryan’s proprietary methods to create competing services and solicit its clients.

EY allegedly came across Ryan’s methods for calculating certain oil-and-gas-related tax credits while conducting audits on Ryan’s clients that had to be submitted to the government. EY, one of the big four accounting firms, said that its activities were protected by the Texas Citizens Participation Act, but the Texas Court of Appeals, First District, said that the statute wasn’t applicable.

The TCPA protects citizens from retaliatory lawsuits that ...