[RValenzuela]

The small family owned business I work for is being maliciously targed by two former employees who have started their own company in the same industry. Both employees incorporated their new business while still employed with the company I work for. Using information such as client names, email, phone numbers and fees, they are now soliciting business from our customers and have succeeded in stealing four accounts using the information they legally stole. While the owners of the company are working with an attorney, the sad reality is that they just don't have the money to pursue this legally. As a result, we may need to lay off some employees. My questions is - can the employees sue these individuals for distress, lost wages, anything? They are acting out of pure malice and deliberately trying to make our lives miserable. Is there anything we can do?

[CaptainForest]

From reading your post, I take it you are asking:

Can the employees you lay off sue these 2 renegade former employees?

The answer is: NO

The ONLY people who can sue these 2 former employees is the company (that is, the family owned business).

[excon]

They are acting out of pure malice and deliberately trying to make our lives miserable.

Hello RV:

My bet is they're trying to make a profit, not do something to you. People don't go into business to try to make other peoples lives miserable. If they do, they go out of business rather quickly.

That doesn't mean these people are good people, but you should remember that all is fair in love and war. Business is war. Your employer had ample opportunities to protect himself and his business. He didn't. I think the responsibility for his failing business rests with him.

excon

[Fr_Chuck]

If you are the person being laid off, why not try and go to work for the people who just started the new business? Work is work

It is not uncommon if an employee does not sign a non compete and a confidentiality clause to start a new business and try and steal customers, it is done every day and is perfectly legal if there was no contract saying they could not do it. Where do you think 1/2 of the cleaning business and insurance business, and car dealership business, and plumbing business and so on comes from.

Part of my job when I was hired by different companies before I ended up signing non compete contracts, was to go after the customers I had with other companies.

This is just business and how it works, many industry are a cut throat business, and they are just trying to make their business work,
So your business needs to steal them back, offer better service so they can't steal them.