Court seal sought for CEO’s exit agreement
NanoMech fears for its secret data
Bankrupt tech company NanoMech on Tuesday asked a bankruptcy court judge for permission to file its separation agreement with the company’s former CEO under seal, contending it contains confidential information.
In June, NanoMech of Springdale asked the court to be allowed to question Jim Phillips regarding his time as chief executive officer after it hired Treliant LLC of Washington, D.C., to investigate transactions he made as CEO. Phillips stepped down weeks before NanoMech’s April bankruptcy filing in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.
In earlier filings, NanoMech said its investigation shows Phillips spent more than $750,000 in company funds on personal expenses and also awarded himself a compensation package valued at $500,000 when he left the company.
In the Tuesday filing, NanoMech said that information in the separation
agreement contains confidential and sensitive financial information that could harm both Phillips and NanoMech. Filing under seal allows the material to be registered with the court without making it a matter of public record.
Phillips is objecting to NanoMech’s request to question him. He contends that NanoMech’s allegations are gross mischaracterizations of the truth or outright fabrications.
In court papers, Phillips said his exit from NanoMech came because of pressure from preferred shareholders and that the compensation package he received was heavily negotiated and involved, among other things, $452,000 in deferred salary. He also argued that money spent on travel was for legitimate marketing and promotional attempts to raise the company’s profile and drum up potential customers.
Founded in 2002, NanoMech develops nanotechnology for use in machining and manufacturing, lubrication, packaging, biomedical implant coatings, and the development of specialty chemicals. Nanotechnology is the manipulation of matter at the atomic and molecular level. scale.
NanoMech claims $7.2 million in assets and owes nearly $19 million to its creditors, according to bankruptcy filings. Total liabilities stand at $18.9 million with $12.5 million owed to creditors secured by property and $6.4 million in unsecured claims. Typically secured creditors take priority and are paid first in a bankruptcy.