On February 10, 2026, global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright won a US$1.1 million arbitration award on behalf of Armadillo Hotel Group, LLC. The dispute involved breach of an employment agreement and the misappropriation of Armadillo's trade secrets by Jack Marshall, Armadillo's former Vice President of Sales. The arbitrator also ordered Marshall to pay for Armadillo's attorneys' fees and costs.

After a three-day evidentiary hearing, the arbitrator found that Marshall, while still employed by Armadillo, emailed Armadillo's confidential and proprietary trade secret information to Armadillo's direct competitor, Corporate Hospitality Services, in a brazen disregard of his obligations to Armadillo.

The arbitrator determined that Marshall improperly sent the information so he could use it during his planned employment by Corporate Hospitality and concluded that Marshall's conduct violated the Texas Uniform Trade Secrets Act. The arbitrator also determined Marshall violated his contractual obligations to Armadillo by failing to repay salary advances he forfeited by resigning early.

"This award demonstrates that post-employment obligations and trade secret protections in Texas are real," said Paul Trahan, who led Norton Rose Fulbright's representation. "When an employee takes trade secrets to a competitor, and uses them to compete unfairly, companies like Armadillo can and should stand up for themselves. This is the right result for a great company and deserving client."

Armadillo operates a network of workforce housing facilities, with nine locations throughout Texas and New Mexico. Based in Austin, Texas, Armadillo serves guests in the oil and gas, data center, construction, infrastructure and disaster relief industries.

Norton Rose Fulbright's disputes team included Paul Trahan and Benton McDonald.